Observing Children's Stress Behaviors in a Kindergarten Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jackson, Lori A.

2009-01-01

This study used qualitative methods to determine whether kindergarten children exhibited stress behaviors during the academic work period of the day. Sixteen children (8 male, 8 female) ages 5-6 years were observed. The data consisted of classroom observations by the researcher, open-ended interviews with teachers, artifacts collected from the…

From Perception to Practice: The Impact of Teachers' Scoring Experience on Performance-based Instruction and Classroom Assessment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goldberg, Gail Lynn; Roswell, Barbara Sherr

2000-01-01

Studied the impact of experience scoring the Maryland School Performance Assessment tasks on teachers' instructional and classroom assessment practice. Interview data, questionnaires, classroom observation, and classroom artifacts from approximately 5 teacher-scorers demonstrated that teachers' appropriation of performance-based instruction may be…

What Is Classroom Discussion? A Look at Teachers' Conceptions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Larson, Bruce E.; Parker, Walter C.

1996-01-01

Explores three social-studies teachers' conceptions of classroom discussion, focusing on discussion's defining characteristics and purpose and influences on usage. Data included interview and think-aloud responses and classroom observations. Teachers view discussion as recitation, teacher-directed conversation, open-ended exploration, a…

Report in Argument's Clothing: An Ecological Perspective on Writing Instruction in a Seventh-Grade Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nystrand, Martin; Graff, Nelson

2001-01-01

Draws on classroom observations, interviews, and writing portfolios to contend that competing demands in modern classrooms can lead to environments that sabotage the teaching of argumentative and persuasive writing. Concludes that the epistemology fostered by classroom talk and other activities was inimical to the complex rhetoric the teacher was…

Collaborative Classroom Management in a Co-Taught Primary School Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rytivaara, Anna

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine how teachers manage their classroom in co-taught lessons. The data were collected by observing and interviewing a pair of primary school teachers. The most important influence of collaboration on classroom management seemed to be the emotional support of another adult, and the opportunity to use different…

Science Teacher Beliefs and Classroom Practice Related to Constructivism in Different School Settings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Savasci, Funda; Berlin, Donna F.

2012-02-01

Science teacher beliefs and classroom practice related to constructivism and factors that may influence classroom practice were examined in this cross-case study. Data from four science teachers in two schools included interviews, demographic questionnaire, Classroom Learning Environment Survey (preferred/perceived), and classroom observations and documents. Using an inductive analytic approach, results suggested that the teachers embraced constructivism, but classroom observations did not confirm implementation of these beliefs for three of the four teachers. The most preferred constructivist components were personal relevance and student negotiation; the most perceived component was critical voice. Shared control was the least preferred, least perceived, and least observed constructivist component. School type, grade, student behavior/ability, curriculum/standardized testing, and parental involvement may influence classroom practice.

Pedagogical Tools for Peacebuilding Education: Engaging and Empathizing with Diverse Perspectives in Multicultural Elementary Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parker, Christina

2016-01-01

This qualitative study used classroom observations, teacher and student interviews, and document analysis to examine the degree to which peacebuilding dialogue processes were implemented in 3 elementary school classrooms and how diverse students, particularly newcomer immigrants, experienced these pedagogies. The study critically examines how…

Gender Meanings in Grade Eight Students: Talk about Classroom Writing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Peterson, Shelley

2002-01-01

Explored ways in which gender influenced students' choices in classroom writing, using data from students' writing, small group conversations, classroom observations, and teacher interviews. Generally, students attempted to maintain a widely recognized gender order in their talk about girls' and boys' writing. Students' writing choices were…

Relationship between Preferred and Actual Opinions about Inquiry-Based Instruction Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nuangchalerm, Prasart

2017-01-01

Based on 10 preservice science teachers in 4 schools, this study presents a detailed analysis of how preservice teacher expectation interacts with school practicum and authentic classroom action of inquiry-based instruction. Classroom observation, lesson plan analysis, and interviews revealed that inquiry-based instruction in the expectation and…

A Vision of Improvement of Learning: South African Teachers' Conceptions of Classroom Assessment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sethusha, Mantsose Jane

2013-01-01

This article explored conceptions that teachers hold about classroom assessment and how these conceptions influence their classroom assessment practices. The qualitative study employed a case study approach. Semi-structured interviews, observations and document analyses were used. The study utilized Brown's (2004) conceptual framework on…

Classroom Management: Students' Perspectives, Goals and Strategies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Allen, James D.

A study investigated classroom management from the students' perspective. Ninety-seven high school students (primarily ninth graders) were observed in one school for 15 weeks in five different classes. Data were collected from this observation, as well as from student and teacher interviews. The guidelines of the Constant-Comparative Method of…

Student Teachers' General and Content-Specific Pedagogical Development within a Mathematics Milieu

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Piccolo, Diana L.; Capraro, Mary Margaret; Capraro, Robert M.

2010-01-01

Fourteen elementary and 6 middle level student teachers were observed and interviewed throughout their initial field placement teaching experience. The Classroom Observation and Performance Assessment for Teachers-Revised (COPAT-R) observation instrument and semistructured interviews were used to compare general and content-specific pedagogical…

Exploration of instruction, assessment, and equity in the middle school science classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Szpyrka, Donna A.

2001-07-01

In order to determine equitable practices of middle school science teachers questionnaire responses, classroom observations, teacher interviews, and assessment artifacts were examined to discover relationships between classroom instruction, assessment practices, and equity. Teachers in middle school science classrooms in six different schools completed a National Center for Education Statistics questionnaire, offered assessment artifacts, and participated in interviews. Observers using a classroom observation protocol and an equity profile rated 22 lessons. The study found that a distinction could be made between teachers who were more equitable and those who were less equitable. Careful planning and organization; the incorporation of tasks, roles, and interactions consistent with investigative science; a collaborative approach to learning; and instruction that takes into account what transpired in previous lessons---appear to be characteristics of lesson design of the more equitable teachers. In addition, instructional strategies and activities that addressed access, equity, and diversity as well as, a classroom climate that was respectful of students' contributions were found to a greater extent in the more equitable teachers' classrooms. While all teachers used multiple methods of assessment, the more equitable teachers used assessment differently. They also provided written feedback to students, relied on more than one aspect of student performance for determining grades, and explicated clear and specific assessment practices.

Single-Gender and Co-Educational Special Education Classrooms: Latina Student Attitudes, Perceptions, and Experiences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Madigan, Jennifer C.

2003-01-01

This qualitative research was designed to give voice to Latina students in single-gender and co-educational secondary-level special education placements for students with mild to moderate learning disabilities. Classroom observations and interviews were conducted with Latina special education students and classroom teachers in both single-gender…

Behavior Management in Preschool Classrooms: Insights Revealed through Systematic Observation and Interview

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ritz, Mariah; Noltemeyer, Amity; Davis, Darrel; Green, Jennifer

2014-01-01

This mixed methods study examined behavior management strategies used by preschool teachers to address student noncompliance in the classroom. Specifically, the study aimed to (1) examine the methods that preschool teachers are currently using to respond to noncompliant behavior in their classrooms, (2) measure the frequency with which each…

Learner-Centered Principles in Teacher-Centered Practices?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schuh, K.L.

2004-01-01

In the study reported here, I compare Learner-Centered Battery (a questionnaire of students' perceptions of the classroom) results and the observation and interview data gathered in one sixth-grade classroom noting first a discrepancy between the descriptions of the classroom that stems from each. I review this discrepancy, highlighting a need for…

Problems with science teaching and learning for English Language Learners in one diverse elementary school

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rodriguez, Karen Margaret

This qualitative study centered on science instruction and learning that occurred in a Title I elementary school in a suburban district in southeast Texas. Twelve teachers were interviewed in order to understand their perceptions of their classroom practices in terms of science instruction and learning for English Language Learners (ELL). This study also analyzed information gathered from teacher lesson plan and classroom observations. The participants’ awareness of the instructional practices necessary for ELL student achievement in science was evident through analysis of interview transcripts. However, after observation of actual classroom instruction, it became apparent that the teaching and learning in most classrooms was not reflective of this awareness. This study proposes that this disconnect may be a result of a lack of quality professional development available to the teachers. The study also outlines and describes the characteristics of quality professional development and its relationship to focused instruction and continuous student improvement.

Brief Antecedent Assessment and Treatment of Tics in the General Education Classroom: A Preliminary Investigation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Watson, T.; Dufrene, Brad; Weaver, Adam; Butler, Tonya; Meeks, Caroline

2005-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine if specific classroom antecedents were associated with motor and vocal tics in two males diagnosed with Tourette's syndrome. A functional assessment consisting of teacher and student interviews, direct observations, brief functional analysis, and confirmatory naturalistic observations indicated that…

Teacher Observation of Classroom Adaptation--Checklist: Development and Factor Structure

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koth, Christine W.; Bradshaw, Catherine P.; Leaf, Philip J.

2009-01-01

Two studies examined the validity and factor structure of the Teacher Observation of Classroom Adaptation-Checklist, an instrument used to evaluate school-based programs. The checklist is a cost-effective alternative to the original interview format, and the factor structure is consistent across gender, race, age, and time of administration.…

Exploring Teachers' Knowledge of Second Language Pronunciation Techniques: Teacher Cognitions, Observed Classroom Practices, and Student Perceptions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baker, Amanda

2014-01-01

This study explored some of the intricate connections between the cognitions (beliefs, knowledge, perceptions, attitudes) and pedagogical practices of five English language teachers, specifically in relation to pronunciation-oriented techniques. Integral to the study was the use of semistructured interviews, classroom observations, and stimulated…

Emotions and Classroom Talk: Toward a Model of the Role of Affect in Students' Experiences of Classroom Discussions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Do, Seung Lee; Schallert, Diane Lemonnier

2004-01-01

To understand the role of affect in classroom discussion, the authors asked 16 students taking a 3-hr seminar to participate in a semester-long grounded theory inquiry. Coding of classroom observations, stimulated recall interviews, and self-ratings from each class meeting resulted in a model of affect as a catalyst in students' experience of…

The sign language skills classroom observation: a process for describing sign language proficiency in classroom settings.

PubMed

Reeves, J B; Newell, W; Holcomb, B R; Stinson, M

2000-10-01

In collaboration with teachers and students at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID), the Sign Language Skills Classroom Observation (SLSCO) was designed to provide feedback to teachers on their sign language communication skills in the classroom. In the present article, the impetus and rationale for development of the SLSCO is discussed. Previous studies related to classroom signing and observation methodology are reviewed. The procedure for developing the SLSCO is then described. This procedure included (a) interviews with faculty and students at NTID, (b) identification of linguistic features of sign language important for conveying content to deaf students, (c) development of forms for recording observations of classroom signing, (d) analysis of use of the forms, (e) development of a protocol for conducting the SLSCO, and (f) piloting of the SLSCO in classrooms. The results of use of the SLSCO with NTID faculty during a trial year are summarized.

Investigating How Nontraditional Elementary Pre-service Teachers Negotiate the Teaching of Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shelton, Mythianne

This qualitative study was designed to investigate the influences on nontraditional preservice teachers as they negotiated the teaching of science in elementary school. Based upon a sociocultural theoretical framework with an identity-in-practice lens, these influences included beliefs about science teaching, life experiences, and the impact of the teacher preparation program. The study sample consisted of two nontraditional preservice teachers who were student teaching in an elementary classroom. Data, collected over a five-month period, included in-depth individual interviews, classroom observations, audio recordings, and reviews of documentations. Interviews focused on the participants' beliefs relating to the teaching of science, prior experiences, and their teacher preparation program experiences relating to the teaching of science. Classroom observations provided additional insights into the classroom setting, participants' teaching strategies, and participants' interactions with the students and cooperating teacher. A whole-text analysis of the interview transcripts, observational field notes, audio recordings and documents generated eight major categories: beliefs about science teaching, role of family, teaching science in the classroom, teacher identity, non-teacher identity, relationships with others, discourses of classroom teaching, and discourses of teachers. The following significant findings emerged from the data: (a) the identity of nontraditional student teachers as science teachers related to early life experiences in science classes; (b) the identity of nontraditional student teachers as science teachers was influenced by their role as parents; (c) nontraditional student teachers learned strategies that supported their beliefs about inquiry learning; and (d) nontraditional student teachers valued the teacher preparation program support system. The results from this qualitative study suggest that sociocultural theory with an identity-in-practice lens provides a theoretical framework for understanding the influences that affect why nontraditional preservice teachers select strategies to teach science in the elementary classroom.

Exploring Korean young children's ideas about living things

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kwon, Young Re

This qualitative study explored concepts of living things that five- and six-year-old Korean children held prior to formal instructional interventions and how their concepts were changed and developed over one semester in a kindergarten classroom. Six focal children in a class of 30 were interviewed in two phases and their hands-on classroom activities and teacher-children interactions were observed. The teacher's journal was also used to gather data. As the study was conducted, a number of alternative concepts related to the children's perceptions of living things were identified and described. The researcher interviewed the children to determine their initial ideas, using an informal interview guide; they responded whether certain objects were living or not, and how they told if the particular objects were living or not. The classroom activities were also observed in large/small groups and individually. An assisting observer viewed the classroom activities and simultaneously recorded science-related teacher-children interactions and the children's hands-on activities. Later the researcher made a transcription of the observer's notes. The data were also collected from the teacher's journal, in which she recorded everyday classroom activities and reflected on teaching and learning. Finally, after 8 weeks of the 16-week instructional intervention, the researcher interviewed the children, using a formal interview guide, as to how their concepts of living things had changed and developed. The researcher interviewed the children as to whether particular objects were plants or animals, neither or both, and the criteria they used to decide. The study showed that the kindergarten children had solid and unique ideas based on their everyday experience with living and non-living things prior to the formal instructional inventions. In the classroom activities, the children showed that they rejected or changed several of their own concepts of living things. The instructional interventions facilitated the children in developing scientific ideas about certain living things. Several of the children's ideas and concepts changed and corresponded to scientific viewpoints. However, others maintained their existing ideas, which were not scientifically based. The study revealed the complexity of teaching kindergarten children a scientific understanding of living things and that teaching the interconnectedness among objects was essential to elaborate concepts. The results of the research suggested improvements for the conceptual change teaching methodology used in the classroom. The study provided insight into the effects of teacher-children interactions and teaching interventions. The study also indicated that the interview and observation research methodology used in this study was a useful vehicle to explore the children's initial ideas and conceptual development in teaching and learning science. The findings of the study suggest that teacher education for teachers of young children should include a complex of instructions because teaching and learning concepts of living things and other related science concepts are complex processes.

What Can You Learn about Writing in School?: A Case Study in an Elementary Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Florio, Susan; And Others

A two-year study investigated writing in the elementary school. Data collected included field notes from observation of a second/third grade classroom, videotapes of selected classroom activities, weekly journals kept by the teacher reflecting her thoughts on teaching in general and on writing in particular, interviews with the teacher about the…

About Creativity, Giftedness, and Teaching the Creatively Gifted in the Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sak, Ugur

2004-01-01

In this case study the author explored a teacher's beliefs about creativity and giftedness and investigated the classroom practices of this teacher of gifted students for 20 years. Seven semi-structured and 2 open observations were carried out in her classroom, and 2 prefigured interviews were conducted with her. She believed that creative…

The Emergence of Student Creativity in Classroom Settings: A Case Study of Elementary Schools in Korea

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cho, Younsoon; Chung, Hye Young; Choi, Kyoulee; Seo, Choyoung; Baek, Eunjoo

2013-01-01

This research explores the emergence of student creativity in classroom settings, specifically within two content areas: science and social studies. Fourteen classrooms in three elementary schools in Korea were observed, and the teachers and students were interviewed. The three types of student creativity emerging in the teaching and learning…

Inclusive Prekindergarten Classrooms in a New Era: Exploring the Perspectives of Teachers in the United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anderson, Elizabeth McKendry; Lindeman, Karen Wise

2017-01-01

The purpose of this article is to share the results of a qualitative research study designed to shed light on the perspectives of inclusive prekindergarten classroom teachers in the United States. This study used surveys, interviews, and classroom observations to explore understandings of recently adopted learning standards and accountability…

Translanguaging Practices and Language Ideologies in Puerto Rican University Science Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mazak , Catherine M.; Herbas-Donoso, Claudia

2014-01-01

The undisputed position of English as the "international language of science" has resulted in a push for its use in college science classrooms in non-English-dominant contexts worldwide. This study uses classroom observation and interviews to examine the use of Spanish and English in college science classrooms at a land-grant university…

What Works in Oklahoma Schools: A Comprehensive Needs Assessment of Oklahoma Schools. Phase II State Report

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marzano Research Laboratory, 2010

2010-01-01

Phase II provides a more detailed examination of classroom variables important to achievement in Oklahoma schools. Where Phase I addressed all nine of the Oklahoma essential elements using survey data, Phase II focuses on what occurs in Oklahoma classrooms primarily using data from principal interviews, classroom observations (on-site), and video…

An Inquiry-Based Approach to Critical Literacy: Pedagogical Nuances of a Second Grade Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beach, Pamela; Cleovoulou, Yiola

2014-01-01

This case study explores the pedagogy and practices of an elementary school teacher who combines inquiry pedagogy and critical literacy. The authors gathered data for this analysis by conducting two interviews with a classroom teacher and observing classroom practices 12 times over a 6 month period. Through a general inductive approach to…

Use of Digital Videos in New Zealand Science Classrooms: Opportunities for Teachers and Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chen, Junjun; Cowie, Bronwen

2016-01-01

This paper reports how New Zealand teachers used digital videos from an educational website in science classrooms and how teachers and students viewed the use of videos. The study involved lesson observations in nine different classrooms, student and teacher interviews, and teacher focus group discussions. Multiple qualitative data were analysed…

Education for Sustainable Development: Liberation or Indoctrination? An Assessment of Faculty Members' Attitudes and Classroom Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Qablan, Ahmad Mohammad; Al-Ruz, Jamal Abu; Khasawneh, Samer; Al-Omari, Aieman

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the attitudes and classroom practices of environmental science faculty members in Jordanian universities. Mix data collection methodology was employed to collect data in this study. In addition to the developed survey, several participants' interviews and classroom observations were conducted with…

Digital Didactical Designs: Teachers' Integration of iPads for Learning-Centered Processes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jahnke, Isa; Kumar, Swapna

2014-01-01

This research presents five examples of how teachers integrated iPads into their classrooms, as part of a larger study of 15 Danish classrooms. Classroom observations and interviews with teachers revealed the use of multiple apps and a focus on creativity, production, and collaboration in the learning process. We discuss the results in the context…

Teacher Implementation of Reform-Based Mathematics and Implications for Algebra Readiness: A Qualitative Study of 4th Grade Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sher, Stephen Korb

2011-01-01

This study looked at 4th grade classrooms to see "how" teachers implement NCTM standards-based or reform-based mathematics instruction and then analyzed it for the capacity to improve students' "algebra readiness." The qualitative study was based on classroom observations, teacher and administrator interviews, and teacher surveys. The study took…

Social Constructivism and Education Identity beyond Assimilation Vestiges: A Teacher's Latina Identity in a Middle School English as a Second Language Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Úbeda, Edwin R.

2017-01-01

This case study highlights the social-cultural relevant pedagogical impact a bilingual teacher has on the middle school ESL classroom through her Latina identity and lived experiences. Data gathering occurred over six months through the principal participant's in-depth interviews, classrooms observations, and document analysis of classroom…

Triangulating Evidence to Investigate the Validity of Measures: Evidence from Discussion during Instruction, Cognitive Interviews, and Written Assessments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burmester, Kristen O'Rourke

2011-01-01

Classrooms are a primary site of evidence about learning. Yet classroom proceedings often occur behind closed doors and hence evidence of student learning is observable only to the classroom teacher. The informal and undocumented nature of this information means that it is rarely included in statistical models or quantifiable analyses. This…

The Opportunities to Build on Existing Expertise in Writing Classrooms: A Study of Writing Lessons in New Zealand Primary Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jesson, Rebecca N.; Cockle, Victoria

2016-01-01

The present study investigated 15 Year 4-6 classrooms in two multicultural schools in New Zealand to understand what opportunities students had to draw on their diverse experiences of texts. A mixed-methods approach was taken, including classroom observations and student interviews. Results suggested that lessons were characterised by a consistent…

Evaluating the Effectiveness of READ 180: A Reading Program for Struggling Middle School Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Latonya R.

2011-01-01

This study was conducted using a qualitative approach to evaluate the effectiveness of READ 180 Program in improving students reading interests and achievement at West Bolivar Middle School (WBMS). A number of interviews and observations were conducted. Two teachers and nine students were interviewed, and nine classroom observations were…

A Cross-Cultural Comparison of Teachers' Expressed Beliefs about Music Education and Their Observed Practices in Classroom Music Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wong, Marina

2005-01-01

Through interviews and observing day-to-day classroom practice, this study explores the beliefs of 10 music teachers in elementary schools in Vancouver and Hong Kong. The results demonstrate that the music teachers of the two localities hold similar cognitive beliefs about the essential elements of music education. However, they hold different…

Qualitative Investigation of Young Children's Music Preferences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roulston, Kathryn

2006-01-01

This qualitative study examined young children's music preferences through group conversations with children, interviews with parents, and non-participant observation of classroom settings in daycare and elementary classrooms. Data were analyzed inductively to generate themes, and revealed that (1) children expressed distinct preferences for an…

Increasing Academic Engagement through Focused Antecedent Modification

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Short, Maureen

2016-01-01

This article reviews the functional behavior assessment steps followed to develop interventions designed to decrease challenging behavior in the classroom. The implementation of antecedent based interventions generated from data gathered through interviews and observations addressed off-task, call outs and other challenging classroom behaviors.…

Teacher Learning of Technology Enhanced Formative Assessment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Feldman, Allan; Capobianco, Brenda M.

2008-01-01

This study examined the integration of technology enhanced formative assessment (FA) into teachers' practice. Participants were high school physics teachers interested in improving their use of a classroom response system (CRS) to promote FA. Data were collected using interviews, direct classroom observations, and collaborative discussions. The…

Parent-rated externalizing behavior in preschoolers: the predictive utility of structured interviews, teacher reports, and classroom observations.

PubMed

Doctoroff, Greta L; Arnold, David H

2004-12-01

This study investigated multiple forms of home and school assessment as predictors of parent-rated behavior problems across a preschool year. Participants were a community sample of 79 preschool children, their parents, and their teachers. Parent ratings of behavior problems were obtained toward the beginning of the school year and approximately 6 months later. Behavior problems were also assessed early in the school year using parent structured interviews, teacher-rating scales, and classroom observations of problem and prosocial behavior. Consistent with hypotheses, each assessment method significantly predicted year-end parent ratings of behavior problems, even above initial ratings.

Examining the Intersections of Music Making and Teaching for Four String Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pellegrino, Kristen

2014-01-01

The purpose of this phenomenological case study was to examine the intersections of music making and teaching for four string teachers. Data included background surveys, three interviews per participant, videotaped classroom observations (jointly viewed during the second interview), and a focus group interview that included music making. Findings…

Teacher Learning in the Workplace: A Study of the Relationship between a Novice EFL Teacher's Classroom Practices and Cognition Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kang, Yan; Cheng, Xiaotang

2014-01-01

This article reports on an in-depth case study of a novice middle school EFL teacher's cognition development during the process of learning to teach in the workplace. Data was collected mainly through classroom observations and interviews. Results indicate that the teacher exhibited a considerable amount of change in her classroom practices, which…

The Impact MCT2 Has on an Elementary and Middle School Reading and Language Arts Classroom Instruction in Mississippi

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Campbell, Sarah Elizabeth

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to understand what No Child Left Behind (NCLB) meant to teachers in Mississippi and to determine what impact this reform had on reading and language arts classroom instruction for teachers. Qualitative research methods in the form of interview data and classroom observations were used to examine teachers' perceptions…

Resistance to Classroom Observation in the Context of Teacher Evaluation: Teachers' and Department Heads' Experiences and Perspectives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

de Lima, Jorge Ávila; Silva, Maria João Tavares

2018-01-01

This paper reports the main findings of a study that sought to understand how teachers and department heads perceived and experienced the implementation of a classroom observation system in a teacher evaluation context. The data was collected through a teacher and department head survey and interviews with department heads who were responsible for…

The role of interpreters in inclusive classrooms.

PubMed

Antia, S D; Kreimeyer, K H

2001-10-01

The roles of interpreters in an inclusive classroom were examined through a qualitative, 3-year case study of three interpreters in an inclusive school. Interviews were conducted with interpreters, classroom teachers, special education teachers, and administrators. The interview data were supplemented with observations and field notes. Results indicate that in addition to sign interpreting between American Sign Language and speech, the interpreters clarified teacher directions, facilitated peer interaction, tutored the deaf children, and kept the teachers and special educators informed of the deaf children's progress. The interpreter/aides and the classroom teachers preferred this full-participant interpreter role, while the special educators and administrators preferred a translator role. Classroom teachers were more comfortable with full-time interpreters who knew the classroom routine, while the special educators and administrators feared that full-time interpreters fostered child and teacher dependence. These issues are discussed in terms of congruence with the Registry of Interpreters code of ethics and how integration of young children might be best facilitated.

A Case Study of a Collaborative Speech-Language Pathologist

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ritzman, Mitzi J.; Sanger, Dixie; Coufal, Kathy L.

2006-01-01

This study explored how a school-based speech-language pathologist implemented a classroom-based service delivery model that focused on collaborative practices in classroom settings. The study used ethnographic observations and interviews with 1 speech-language pathologist to provide insights into how she implemented collaborative consultation and…

Culturally Responsive Pedagogy for Teacher Candidates of Color in Teacher Education Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gist, Conra D.

2011-01-01

This dissertation study uses culturally responsive pedagogy as a conceptual framework for exploring how teacher educators structure content, pedagogy, and classroom communities for teacher candidates of color at two model teacher education programs. Using multiple data sources including interviews, focus groups, classroom observations, faculty and…

General Educators' Perceptions and Attributions about Asian American Students: Implications for Special Education Referral

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hui-Michael, Ying; Garcia, Shernaz B.

2009-01-01

This qualitative study investigated five elementary classroom teachers' perceptions of, and attributions about the school performance of Asian American students. Using naturalistic inquiry, data were obtained through interviews, classroom observations, document reviews and field notes; and were analyzed using grounded theory techniques. The…

From Knowledge to Practice: A Gifted Educator's Journey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reinhard, Jessica J.

2016-01-01

This qualitative case study of a third-year teacher of intermediate students in a self-contained gifted education classroom uncovers the relationship between knowledge of pedagogical practices from national gifted education standards and their transfer to classroom practice. Ethnographic methods of interviews, field observations, lesson documents,…

Students' Critical Thinking Skills in a Thai ICT Schools Pilot Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rumpagaporn, Methinee Wongwanich; Darmawan, I. Gusti Ngurah

2007-01-01

This study is exploratory, examining to what extent the Thai ICT (information and communication technology) schools have classroom learning environments that are associated with certain teacher characteristics using questionnaires, interview surveys, and computer-based classroom observations in order to collect data from 13 Thai ICT model schools.…

An Avenue for Challenging Sexism: Examining the High School Sociology Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stevens, Kaylene Mae; Martell, Christopher C.

2016-01-01

In this interpretative qualitative study, the researchers investigated the beliefs and practices of six high school sociology teachers in relation to the teaching of gender. Using a feminist lens, this study employed mixed methods, analyzing teacher interviews, observations, and classroom artifacts. The results showed that the teachers viewed…

The Concrete-Representational-Abstract Sequence of Instruction in Mathematics Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mudaly, Vimolan; Naidoo, Jayaluxmi

2015-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to explore how master mathematics teachers use the concrete-representational-abstract (CRA) sequence of instruction in mathematics classrooms. Data was collected from a convenience sample of six master teachers by observations, video recordings of their teaching, and semi-structured interviews. Data collection also…

Code-Switching in a College Mathematics Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chitera, Nancy

2009-01-01

This paper presents the findings that explored from the discourse practices of the mathematics teacher educators in initial teacher training colleges in Malawi. It examines how mathematics teacher educators construct a multilingual classroom and how they view code-switching. The discussion is based on pre-observation interviews with four…

Teacher Code Switching Consistency and Precision in a Multilingual Mathematics Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chikiwa, Clemence; Schäfer, Marc

2016-01-01

This paper reports on a study that investigated teacher code switching consistency and precision in multilingual secondary school mathematics classrooms in South Africa. Data was obtained through interviewing and observing five lessons of each of three mathematics teachers purposively selected from three township schools in the Eastern Cape…

Promoting Effective Use of Technology through Teacher-Researcher Collaboration

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yanik, H. Bahadir; Porter, Wayne

2009-01-01

This article presents a case study in which researcher-practitioner collaboration took place to promote effective use of technology in an urban elementary school mathematics classroom. Data were primarily gathered through classroom observations and interviews. The aim of this study was twofold. First, to increase our understanding of the effects…

Arts Integration: What Is Really Happening in the Elementary Classroom?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

LaJevic, Lisa

2013-01-01

Researching how Arts Integration is practiced in a primary school, this article explores how elementary teachers understand, implement, and experience Arts Integration. Weaving together personal experiences, teacher interviews, focus group sessions, classroom observations, and written texts, I investigate how the arts are often devalued in Arts…

Implementation Strategies of Inclusive Education in Cypriot Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Angelides, Panayiotis; Hajisoteriou, Christina

2013-01-01

This research examined the implementation strategies used by the participant teachers in order to practice inclusion in their classrooms. To this end, we investigated the participant teachers' perceptions of their roles and the barriers faced in the implementation of inclusion. Interviews and observations were carried out with four teachers in…

Teacher Beliefs, Knowledge, and Practice of Self-Regulated Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Spruce, Robin; Bol, Linda

2015-01-01

This study examined teacher beliefs, knowledge, and classroom practice of self-regulated learning for ten elementary and middle school teachers. Using Zimmerman's SRL model to frame our method and results, we administered questionnaires, observed classrooms and conducted interviews with these teachers. Teachers had positive beliefs about the role…

The Structured Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ljusberg, Anna-Lena

2011-01-01

The aim of this article is to highlight the organisation of the remedial classroom. The data were collected from observations and semi-structured interviews with 10 teachers in remedial classes for children seen and treated as having concentration deficits. The teachers use primarily compensatory language that places the deficits in the pupils.…

An Exploration of Teachers' Agency and Social Relationships within Dyslexia-Support Provision in an English Secondary School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ross, Helen

2017-01-01

This article explores teachers' experiences of dyslexia and classroom interventions via lesson observations and semi-structured interviews. These experiences were analysed through a Bourdieusien lens, based on Jenkins's "levels of interaction", to delineate power relationships inherent in classroom interactions, teachers' interactions…

Childcare Providers' Use of Practices to Promote Young Children's Social-Emotional Competence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Steed, Elizabeth A.; Roach, Andrew T.

2017-01-01

Findings are presented regarding childcare providers' use of evidence-based strategies to promote preschoolers' social-emotional competence in 38 urban childcare classrooms. Descriptive results from classroom observations and childcare teachers' interviews indicated that in the absence of training, childcare teaching staff implemented few of these…

Sustaining inquiry-based teaching methods in the middle school science classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Murphy, Amy Fowler

This dissertation used a combination of case study and phenomenological research methods to investigate how individual teachers of middle school science in the Alabama Math, Science, and Technology Initiative (AMSTI) program sustain their use of inquiry-based methods of teaching and learning. While the overall context for the cases was the AMSTI program, each of the four teacher participants in this study had a unique, individual context as well. The researcher collected data through a series of interviews, multiple-day observations, and curricular materials. The interview data was analyzed to develop a textural, structural, and composite description of the phenomenon. The Reformed Teaching Observation Protocol (RTOP) was used along with the Assesing Inquiry Potential (AIP) questionnaire to determine the level of inquiry-based instruction occuring in the participants classrooms. Analysis of the RTOP data and AIP data indicated all of the participants utilized inquiry-based methods in their classrooms during their observed lessons. The AIP data also indicated the level of inquiry in the AMSTI curricular materials utilized by the participants during the observations was structured inquiry. The findings from the interview data suggested the ability of the participants to sustain their use of structured inquiry was influenced by their experiences with, beliefs about, and understandings of inquiry. This study contributed to the literature by supporting existing studies regarding the influence of teachers' experiences, beliefs, and understandings of inquiry on their classroom practices. The inquiry approach stressed in current reforms in science education targets content knowledge, skills, and processes needed in a future scientifically literate citizenry.

Exploring Pedagogical Reasoning: Reading Strategy Instruction from Two Teachers' Perspectives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Li, Hua; Wilhelm, Kim Hughes

2008-01-01

This study compares reading lessons given by two teachers in senior middle school classrooms on China's mainland. Classroom observation focused on lesson stages and activities as well as student responses. Follow-up interviews with the teachers aimed to discover the decision-making processes and choices made when teaching the lessons. Most notable…

Low- and High-Achieving Sixth-Grade Students' Access to Participation during Mathematics Discourse

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lack, Brian; Swars, Susan Lee; Meyers, Barbara

2014-01-01

A descriptive, holistic, multiple-case methodology was applied to examine the nature of participation in discourse of two low- and two high-achieving grade 6 students while solving mathematical tasks in a standards-based classroom. Data collected via classroom observations and student interviews were analyzed through a multiple-cycle coding…

Unpacking Ideologies of Linguistic Purism: How Dual Language Teachers Make Sense of Everyday Translanguaging

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martínez, Ramón Antonio; Hikida, Michiko; Durán, Leah

2015-01-01

This article draws on qualitative data from two Spanish-English dual language elementary classrooms to explore how teachers in these classrooms made sense of the everyday practice of bilingualism. Methodologically, this study relied on participant observation, video recording, and semi-structured interviews. Conceptually, this article draws on the…

Socially Inclusive Pedagogy in Literacy Classes: Fostering Inclusion in the Inner City

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cleovoulou, Yiola

2008-01-01

Drawing on case studies of five elementary school teachers in one inner city school, the author explored ways teachers foster social inclusion in their classrooms. Rooted in classroom observations and extensive teacher interviews, teachers' teaching methods and practices were examined as a base from which to explore socially inclusive pedagogy in…

Self-Assembled Student Interactions in Undergraduate General Chemistry Clicker Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

MacArthur, James R.; Jones, Loretta

2013-01-01

Student interviews, focus groups, and classroom observations were used in an exploratory study of the nature of student interactions in a large (300+ students) general chemistry course taught with clickers. These data suggest that students are self-assembling their learning environment: choosing ways in which to interact with one another during…

Integrating the Secondary School Foreign Language Classroom through Multiple Learning Activities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DeFalco, Laura

2011-01-01

Foreign language teachers experience difficulties in teaching students with learning disabilities. The challenge is to teach students with and without disabilities in the same classroom while having no background knowledge of how to teach towards all these students. Through observations and interviews with two foreign language teachers, the use of…

Academic Practices to Gain and Maintain Student-Teacher Connectedness and Classroom Behavioral Management, Related to Educator Demographics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kendall, Leslie Threadgill

2015-01-01

Connectedness and classroom management has been defined as the ability to relate to students and keep order and maintain successful relationships with individuals. This qualitative study utilized surveys, questionnaires, interviews, and observations to examine the best practices implemented by educators to develop and maintain connections with…

Information Management Tools for Classrooms: Exploring Database Management Systems. Technical Report No. 28.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Freeman, Carla; And Others

In order to understand how the database software or online database functioned in the overall curricula, the use of database management (DBMs) systems was studied at eight elementary and middle schools through classroom observation and interviews with teachers and administrators, librarians, and students. Three overall areas were addressed:…

Multilingual Education Policy in Practice: Classroom Literacy Instruction in Different Scripts in Eritrea

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Asfaha, Yonas Mesfun; Kroon, Sjaak

2011-01-01

This contribution compares literacy instruction in three different scripts in Eritrea. It uses data stemming from classroom observations of beginning readers of Tigrinya (Ge'ez script), Arabic (Arabic script) and Saho (Roman alphabet), the examination of teaching materials, and teacher interviews. Our analysis focuses on literacy events. We…

A Chinese EFL Teacher's Classroom Assessment Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Xiaoying

2017-01-01

This article reports on a case study of how an experienced EFL teacher assessed her students in her oral English course at a university in China. Data were collected over one semester through document analysis, classroom observation and recording, interviews, and student journals. Analysis revealed that the teacher assessed her students through…

An Investigation of Higher-Order Thinking Skills in Smaller Learning Community Social Studies Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fischer, Christopher; Bol, Linda; Pribesh, Shana

2011-01-01

This study investigated the extent to which higher-order thinking skills are promoted in social studies classes in high schools that are implementing smaller learning communities (SLCs). Data collection in this mixed-methods study included classroom observations and in-depth interviews. Findings indicated that higher-order thinking was rarely…

The Teacher's Laptop as a Hub for Learning in the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parr, Judy M.; Ward, Lorrae

2011-01-01

This article presents data from a longitudinal study of the effects of providing teachers with personal laptop computers. It considers the role of teacher laptops in learning and teaching in three schools selected because technology was widely used there. Using multiple methods of data collection (observation in classrooms; interviews with…

How Much Foreign Language Is There in the Foreign Language Classroom?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Duff, Patricia A.; Polio, Charlene G.

1990-01-01

Classroom observation of 13 college language courses and analysis of student questionnaire and teacher interview responses indicated that teachers varied widely in use of target language with a mean of 67.9 percent; language type, departmental policy, lesson content, and teacher training affected target language use; and students were generally…

A Breath of Fresh Air: Students' Perceptions of Interactions with African American Faculty

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Neville, Kathleen M.; Parker, Tara L.

2017-01-01

In this phenomenological study we relied on classroom observations and 22 in-depth interviews with students as they interacted with African American faculty. Findings reveal the meaning students made from these classroom interactions and the ways African American faculty, significantly and positively, influenced the student experience. More…

The Role of Digital Technologies in Numeracy Teaching and Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Geiger, Vince; Goos, Merrilyn; Dole, Shelley

2015-01-01

This paper presents a model of numeracy that integrates the use of digital technologies among other elements of teaching and learning mathematics. Drawing on data from a school-based project, which includes records of classroom observations, semi-structured teacher interviews and artefacts such as student work samples, a classroom-based vignette…

Perceptions and Practices: Biology graduate teaching assistants' framing of a controversial socioscientific issue

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gardner, Grant; Jones, Gail

2011-05-01

Graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) are gaining increasing responsibility for the instruction of undergraduate science students, yet little is known about their beliefs about science pedagogy or subsequent classroom practices. This study looked at six GTAs who were primary instructors in an introductory biology laboratory course. Teaching assistants taught a lesson about the potential social, health, and environmental impacts of genetically modified crops. Through classroom observations and in-depth interviews, the researchers examined how instructors chose to frame their lessons and what GTAs perceived as important for students to know about this particular socioscientific issue (SSI). Results showed a disconnect between the relatively mature conceptualizations of effective SSI instruction that emerged during interviews and classroom practice.

Engagement with Young Adult Literature: Outcomes and Processes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ivey, Gay; Johnston, Peter H.

2013-01-01

This study examines students' perceptions of the outcomes and processes of engaged reading in classrooms prioritizing engagement through self-selected, self-paced reading of compelling young adult literature. The primary data were 71 end-of-year student interviews, supported by end-of-year teacher interviews, biweekly observational data,…

Interview with a Wild Animal: Integrating Science and Language Arts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scarnati, James T.

1994-01-01

Using a unit on earthworms, this article shows how science and language arts can be successfully integrated in a middle school classroom through hands-on observation, interviewing, and writing exercises. The integration process engages students, uses class time more efficiently, encourages dialog, and improves outcomes and appreciation of the…

Pre-Service Teachers' Retrospective and Prospective Evaluations: Program, Self, and Teaching Profession

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ulusoy, Mustafa

2015-01-01

This study aimed to investigate teacher candidates' retrospective and prospective evaluations about the classroom teacher education program, self, and the teaching profession. Observations, interviews, focus group interviews, and surveys were used to collect data from the 240 subjects. Teacher candidates believed that the teaching profession is…

"Who Am I to Bring Diversity into the Classroom?" Learning Communities Wrestle with Creating Inclusive College Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Considine, Jennifer R.; Mihalick, Jennifer E.; Mogi-Hein, Yoko R.; Penick-Parks, Marguerite W.; Van Auken, Paul M.

2014-01-01

This study explored the experiences of gateway course instructors during the implementation of pedagogical changes aimed at improving the success of diverse students. A detailed case study was built through analysis of peer observations, focus groups, oral and written reflections, student grades, in-depth interviews, and pre and post student…

The Dilemma of Time: Student-Centered Teaching in the Rural Classroom in China

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Dan

2011-01-01

China has been promoting student-centered education under the current curriculum reform. However, teachers in rural schools continue to exercise tight control of the classroom, with lecturing taking up most of the class time. Drawing on ethnographic observation and interviews in a rural elementary school, this study analyzes the rationale of rural…

Sex-Typed Teaching Styles of University Professors and Student Reactions. Final Report, October 1, 1978 - December 31, 1979.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Macke, Anne Statham; And Others

Teaching styles and possible sex-typed differences in teaching approaches were studied at Ohio State University. Classroom teaching behaviors of 167 professors were observed, and interviews with a subsample of 30 professors were conducted. Additionally, student reactions to these classroom behaviors were assessed through a questionnaire…

How Do Teachers and Learners Perceive Corrective Feedback in the Japanese Language Classroom?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yoshida, Reiko

2010-01-01

This study examined Japanese language teachers' and learners' perceptions of corrective feedback (CF), focusing on the cases in which the learners responded to the teachers' CF. Data were collected from the second-year course of an Australian university for 1 semester by classroom observation and audio recording and stimulated recall interviews.…

Examining Elementary School Teachers' Integration of Technology and Enactment of TPACK in Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Urbina, Angela; Polly, Drew

2017-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine how elementary school teachers integrated technology into their mathematics teaching in classroom settings that were one-to-one computer environments for most of the day. Following a series of classroom observations and interviews, inductive qualitative analyses of data indicated that teachers felt…

Teaching and Learning about Matter in Grade 6 Classrooms: A Conceptual Change Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pimthong, Pattamaporn; Yutakom, Naruemon; Roadrangka, Vantipa; Sanguanruang, Sudjid; Cowie, Bronwen; Cooper, Beverley

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to enhance the teaching and learning of matter and its properties for grade 6 students. The development of a conceptual change approach instructional unit was undertaken for this purpose. Pre- and post-concept surveys, classroom observations, and student and teacher interviews were used to collect data. The teaching…

Group Time in Early Childhood Centers: An Exploratory Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McAfee, Oralie

To investigate the current status of group time in early childhood centers, a small-scale exploratory study was designed and executed. Results of interviews with 35 teachers and observations in five classrooms serving children ages 2 1/2 through kindergarten revealed that all classrooms had at least one group time or circle time, usually in the…

Teacher Adaptations to a Core Reading Program: Increasing Access to Curriculum for Elementary Students in Urban Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maniates, Helen

2017-01-01

This article examines how three urban elementary school teachers adapted pedagogical strategies from a school district--adopted core reading program to increase their students' access to the curriculum. Using teacher interviews and classroom observations to construct a descriptive case study of teacher adaptation, analysis reveals that the…

More than "Sluts" or "Prissy Girls": Gender and Becoming in Senior Secondary Drama Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lambert, Kirsten; Wright, Peter R.; Currie, Jan; Pascoe, Robin

2017-01-01

This article examines the relationships between the embodiment of dramatic characters, gender, and identity. It draws on ethnographic data based on observations and interviews with 24 drama teachers and senior secondary drama students in Western Australia. We explore how student becomings in year 12 drama classrooms are mediated and constituted…

Pedagogical and Political Encounters in Linguistically and Culturally Diverse Primary Classrooms: Examples from Quebec, Canada, and Gauteng, South Africa

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Breton-Carbonneau, Gabrielle; Cleghorn, Ailie; Evans, Rinelle; Pesco, Diane

2012-01-01

Comparative research in multilingual urban primary schools indicates that the pedagogical and political goals of schooling may operate at cross-purposes. Classroom observations and teacher interview-discussions were conducted in classes for immigrant children in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, where the language of instruction is French, and in classes…

"Space and Consequences": The Influence of the Roundtable Classroom Design on Student Dialogue

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parsons, Caroline S.

2016-01-01

This study sought to explore how the design of both physical and virtual learning spaces influence student dialogue in a modern university. Qualitative analysis of the learning spaces in an undergraduate liberal arts program was conducted. Interview and focus group data from students and faculty, in addition to classroom observations, resulted in…

Civics Is Largely about Politics: The Possibilities and Challenges of a Citizenship Education Pedagogy That Embraces Democratic Politics and Recognizes Diversity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Molina-Girón, L. Alison

2016-01-01

Research investigating the practice of citizenship education in multicultural schools is scarce. Drawing on classroom observations and teacher and student interviews in four multicultural Grade 10 Civics classrooms in Ottawa, Canada, this case study discusses one teacher's unique citizenship education pedagogy, an approach that embraces democratic…

Toward More Joyful Learning: Integrating Play into Frameworks of Middle Grades Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Conklin, Hilary G.

2014-01-01

Recent efforts to define qualities of effective teaching practice have done little to capture the role of play, imagination, and creativity in classroom teaching. Drawing on theories of play and data from a two-year case study that included classroom observations, interviews, artifact collection, and surveys, the author examines the ways in which…

Using Concept-Based Instruction in the L2 Classroom: Perspectives from Current and Future Language Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williams, Lawrence; Abraham, Lee B.; Negueruela-Azarola, Eduardo

2013-01-01

A number of recent studies (see, for example, Lantolf, 2010; Negueruela & Lantolf, 2006; van Compernolle, 2011) have focused on the use of learning tools developed according to the principles of concept-based instruction (CBI). Using videorecorded data from interviews and observations of classroom instruction, our study seeks to contribute to…

Classroom Interaction in Teaching English as Foreign Language at Lower Secondary Schools in Indonesia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sundari, Hanna

2017-01-01

The aim of this study was to develop a deep understanding of interaction in language classroom in foreign language context. Interviews, as major instrument, to twenty experienced English language teachers from eight lower secondary schools (SMP) were conducted in Jakarta, completed by focus group discussions and class observation/recordings. The…

Sign Language Use and the Appreciation of Diversity in Hearing Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brereton, Amy

2008-01-01

This article is the result of a year-long study into the effects of sign language use on participation in one mainstream preschool setting. Observations and interviews were the primary data-collection tools used during this investigation. This article focuses on how the use of sign language in the classroom affected the learning community's…

Teachers' Beliefs, Perceived Practice and Actual Classroom Practice in Relation to Traditional (Teacher-Centered) and Constructivist (Learner-Centered) Teaching (Note 1)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kaymakamoglu, Sibel Ersel

2018-01-01

This study explored the EFL teachers' beliefs, perceived practice and actual classroom practice in relation to Traditional (teacher-centered) and Constructivist (learner-centered) teaching in Cyprus Turkish State Secondary Schools context. For this purpose, semi-structured interviews and structured observations were employed with purposively…

Kindergarten Teachers' Orientations to Teacher-Centered and Student-Centered Pedagogies and Their Influence on Their Students' Understanding of Addition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Polly, Drew; Margerison, Ashley; Piel, John A.

2014-01-01

This study examined the influence of kindergarten teachers' orientations toward student-centered teaching and their influence on their students' understanding of addition. The study examined 120 students across 10 classrooms. Based on an interview and two classroom observations, 10 teachers were classified as either student centered or mainly…

Critical Teacher Talk: Successful English for Academic Purposes Classroom Practices in a Global Campus

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kim, Namsook

2016-01-01

Drawn on the sociocultural paradigm, I examined teacher-student communication with emphasis on teacher's talk and its role on international students' learning English as a Second Language in an English for Academic Purposes classroom in a global campus in the U.S. Developmental data analyses of class observations, teacher and student interviews,…

Teacher Interactions within the Physical Environment: How Teachers Alter Their Space and/or Routines Because of Classroom Character.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lang, Dale Christopher

Through questionnaires, observations, and interviews, this study revealed the degree to which 31 high school teachers altered their classroom spaces and/or adjusted their routines to meet their pedagogical goals at a temporary school site. Teachers emphatically desired: (1) an appropriate amount of space to rearrange student furniture, enabling…

Use of Interview and Observation to Clarify Reported Practices of Head Start Staff Concerning Problem Behavior: Implications for Programs and Training

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Snell, Martha E.; Voorhees, Mary D.; Berlin, Rebecca A.; Stanton-Chapman, Tina L.; Hadden, Sarah; McCarty, Jane

2012-01-01

This study used interviews and classroom observation to follow up a survey of 78 Head Start staff from five programs in the mid-Atlantic region. The purpose of the study was to collect additional details about administrator and staff needs in regard to addressing children's challenging behavior in order to design a PBS in-service intervention.…

The Connection between Role Model Relationships and Self-Direction in Developmental Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Di Tommaso, Kathrynn

2010-01-01

This paper presents a qualitative study that used classroom observations, faculty interviews, and student interviews to investigate the meaning and importance of seven non-cognitive variables to a cohort of developmental writing students at an urban community college. The variables studied included finances, study management, college surroundings,…

A Phenomenological Study: Teachers' Experiences of Using Digital Storytelling in Early Childhood Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yuksel-Arslan, Pelin; Yildirim, Soner; Robin, Bernard Ross

2016-01-01

This study investigates how early childhood education (ECE) teachers incorporated digital storytelling in their classrooms and the challenges and successes that they faced in the process. After the teachers attended a digital storytelling workshop, in-depth phenomenological interview, observation and focus group interviews were used to collect…

The Effects of Implementing a Reading Workshop in Middle School Language Arts Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thomas, Angela Falter

2012-01-01

Two language arts teachers in a small, rural middle school set a goal of improving their reading instruction and ultimately their students' learning. The two teachers implemented Reading Workshop as their new methodology for teaching reading to all six of their 7th and 8th grade classes. Interviews and classroom observations, over the course of…

A Case Study of a Reluctant Word Processor: A Look at One Student in a Word Processing Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sloane, Sarah

A case study examined the writing problems of Jay, a freshman composition student at the University of Massachusetts, to determine how teachers should handle students whose composing styles are not suited to writing with word processors. Interviews, classroom observation, and careful analyses of Jay's essays in progress and logsheets were…

Is Mathematics T.I.R.E.D.? A Profile of Quiet Disaffection in the Secondary Mathematics Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nardi, Elena; Steward, Susan

2003-01-01

Reports on a one-year study of quiet disaffection conducted in three Year 9 mathematics classrooms in Norfolk (England). Constructs a profile of quiet disaffection from secondary mathematics through extensive observation and interviews with 13-14 year-old pupils (n=70). Proposes that its characteristics include tedium, isolation, rote learning,…

A Case for Culturally Relevant Teaching in Science Education and Lessons Learned for Teacher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mensah, Felicia Moore

2011-01-01

In this article, the researcher discusses three elementary pre-service teachers' experiences in co-planning and co-teaching a Pollution Unit in a 4th-5th grade science classroom in New York City. The study makes use of microteaching papers, lesson plans, researcher classroom observations, interviews, and informal conversations to elicit lessons…

An Empirical Study: To What Extent and in What Ways Does Social Foundations of Education Inform Four Teachers' Educational Beliefs and Classroom Practices?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Benchik-Osborne, Jacquelyn R.

2013-01-01

Within the state selected for this study, teacher preparation programs and state certification criterion require that educators examine the relationship between school and society within social foundations of education (SFE) coursework. Using observations and interviews, this study examines to what extent four experienced, urban classroom teachers…

Practicing What We Teach: A Self-Study in Implementing an Inquiry-Based Curriculum in a Middle Grades Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dias, Michael; Eick, Charles J.; Brantley-Dias, Laurie

2011-01-01

A science teacher educator returned to teaching adolescents after more than 10 years in the professoriate. We studied his beliefs, practice and daily use of inquiry pedagogy while implementing a reform-based curriculum. Reflection on practice was evidenced by a weekly journal, classroom observations and debriefings, and extensive interviews. Newly…

The Thud at the Classroom Door: Teachers' Curriculum Decision Making in Response to a New Textbook. Draft.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kon, Jane Heckley

This study, based on interviews and classroom observation, evaluates what seven fifth-grade teachers in California did one autumn when a controversial new state-approved social studies textbook arrived at their doors. By tracking the teachers' daily curriculum decisions for social studies during the first few months following receipt of the…

Engaging Primary Students in Learning about New Zealand Birds: A Socially Relevant Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chen, Junjun; Cowie, Bronwen

2013-01-01

This article reports on a classroom study of a unit on New Zealand birds that focused on adaptation and conservation in a Year 7 class. The unit used a "context as social circumstances" model. The researchers observed the nine lessons and interviewed students, the classroom teacher, and three other teachers who had taught the same unit.…

Whiteness in the Social Studies Classroom: Students' Conceptions of Race and Ethnicity in United States History

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martell, Christopher C.

2013-01-01

In this study, the researcher examined student conceptions of "Whiteness" as it relates to past and present U.S. history. Using Critical Race Theory as the lens, this study employed mixed methods, analyzing teacher observations, classroom artifacts/student work, survey, and interview data from White students and students of color at an…

TPACK Goes to Sixth Grade: Lessons from a Middle School Teacher in a High-Technology-Access Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wetzel, Keith; Marshall, Summer

2012-01-01

This is a qualitative study addressing the question: In what ways does a sixth grade middle school teacher show evidence of behaviors that fit the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework in the classroom? The researcher observed in this class, interviewed the teacher, and looked for evidence of the interplay between…

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching in Practice: A Case Study of a Fourth-Grade Mainstream Classroom Teacher

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhang-Wu, Qianqian

2017-01-01

As a result of increases in immigration, more students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds are entering K-12 classrooms in the United States. Thus, the need to study the education of diverse learners is intensified. Drawing upon semi-structured interviews, observations, and informal conversations, this case study examined how a…

`Not hard to sway': a case study of student engagement in two large engineering classes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shekhar, Prateek; Borrego, Maura

2018-07-01

Although engineering education research has empirically validated the effectiveness of active learning in improving student learning over traditional lecture-based methods, the adoption of active learning in classrooms has been slow. One of the greatest reported barriers is student resistance towards engagement in active learning exercises. This paper argues that the level of student engagement in active learning classrooms is an interplay of social and physical classroom characteristics. Using classroom observations and instructor interviews, this study describes the influence of the interaction of student response systems and classroom layout on student engagement in two large active-learning-based engineering classrooms. The findings suggest that the use of different student response systems in combination with cluster-style seating arrangements can increase student engagement in large classrooms.

Fidelity of Implementation of Research Experience for Teachers in the Classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sen, Tapati

In this study, the Arizona State University Mathematics and Science Teaching Fellows 2010 program was analyzed qualitatively from start to finish to determine the impact of the research experience on teachers in the classroom. The sample for the study was the 2010 cohort of eight high school science teachers. Erickson’s (1986) interpretive, participant observational fieldwork method was used to report data by means of detailed descriptions of the research experience and classroom implementation. Data was collected from teacher documents, interviews, and observations. The findings revealed various factors that were responsible for an ineffective implementation of the research experience in the classroom such as research experience, curriculum support, availability of resources, and school curriculum. Implications and recommendations for future programs are discussed in the study.

Follow-Up Study of Rural Schools Implementing CSR Programs in the Southwest. Research Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carlson, Robert V.

Case studies of five small and isolated rural schools in the Southwest focused on their ability to fully implement Comprehensive School Reform Demonstration (CSR) programs over the 3-year period of their federal grants. Data were gathered via interviews with school personnel, classroom observations, document reviews, and telephone interviews with…

Review of the Third Year of the Partial Immersion Program at Key Elementary School, Arlington, Virginia.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rhodes, Nancy C.

The third year of the partial immersion program in grades one through three at Key Elementary School (Arlington, Virginia), where half the day is taught in English and half in Spanish, is reported. The review includes classroom observations, student and teacher interviews, student assessment, and parent and staff interviews. Student assessments…

I Have Something to Tell You: A Child with a Cochlear Implant's Struggles and Determination to Engage with Peers in an Inclusive Preschool Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lindeman, Karen Wise

2012-01-01

This study investigated how a child with early cochlear implantation interacted with peers in his inclusive preschool setting. A qualitative case-study framed in a socio-linguistic framework guided the data collection and analysis. Data collection included detailed field notes, classroom free play observations, informal student interviews, teacher…

Standardized Observational Assessment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Combined and Predominantly Inattentive Subtypes. II. Classroom Observations.

PubMed

McConaughy, Stephanie H; Ivanova, Masha Y; Antshel, Kevin; Eiraldi, Ricardo B; Dumenci, Levent

2009-07-01

Trained classroom observers used the Direct Observation Form (DOF; McConaughy & Achenbach, 2009) to rate observations of 163 6- to 11-year-old children in their school classrooms. Participants were assigned to four groups based on a parent diagnostic interview and parent and teacher rating scales: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)-Combined type (n = 64); ADHD-Inattentive type (n = 22); clinically referred without ADHD (n = 51); and nonreferred control children (n = 26). The ADHD-Combined group scored significantly higher than the referred without ADHD group and controls on the DOF Intrusive and Oppositional syndromes, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Problems scale, Hyperactivity-Impulsivity subscale, and Total Problems; and significantly lower on the DOF On-Task score. The ADHD-Inattentive group scored significantly higher than controls on the DOF Sluggish Cognitive Tempo and Attention Problems syndromes, Inattention subscale, and Total Problems; and significantly lower on the DOF On-Task score. Implications are discussed regarding the discriminative validity of standardized classroom observations for identifying children with ADHD and differentiating between the two ADHD subtypes.

Standardized Observational Assessment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Combined and Predominantly Inattentive Subtypes. II. Classroom Observations

PubMed Central

McConaughy, Stephanie H.; Ivanova, Masha Y.; Antshel, Kevin; Eiraldi, Ricardo B.; Dumenci, Levent

2010-01-01

Trained classroom observers used the Direct Observation Form (DOF; McConaughy & Achenbach, 2009) to rate observations of 163 6- to 11-year-old children in their school classrooms. Participants were assigned to four groups based on a parent diagnostic interview and parent and teacher rating scales: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)—Combined type (n = 64); ADHD—Inattentive type (n = 22); clinically referred without ADHD (n = 51); and nonreferred control children (n = 26). The ADHD—Combined group scored significantly higher than the referred without ADHD group and controls on the DOF Intrusive and Oppositional syndromes, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Problems scale, Hyperactivity-Impulsivity subscale, and Total Problems; and significantly lower on the DOF On-Task score. The ADHD—Inattentive group scored significantly higher than controls on the DOF Sluggish Cognitive Tempo and Attention Problems syndromes, Inattention subscale, and Total Problems; and significantly lower on the DOF On-Task score. Implications are discussed regarding the discriminative validity of standardized classroom observations for identifying children with ADHD and differentiating between the two ADHD subtypes. PMID:20802813

Teaching strategies in inclusive classrooms with deaf students.

PubMed

Cawthon, S W

2001-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate teacher speech and educational philosophies in inclusive classrooms with deaf and hearing students. Data were collected from language transcripts, classroom observations, and teacher interviews. Total speech output, Mean Length Utterance, proportion of questions to statements, and proportion of open to closed questions were calculated for each teacher. Teachers directed fewer utterances, on average, to deaf than to hearing students but showed different language patterns on the remaining measures. Inclusive philosophies focused on an individualized approach to teaching, attention to deaf culture, advocacy, smaller class sizes, and an openness to diversity in the classroom. The interpreters' role in the classroom included translating teacher speech, voicing student sign language, mediating communication between deaf students and their peers, and monitoring overall classroom behavior.

Learning to write in science: A study of English language learners' writing experience in sixth-grade science classrooms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qi, Yang

Writing is a predictor of academic achievement and is essential for student success in content area learning. Despite its importance, many students, including English language learners (ELLs), struggle with writing. There is thus a need to study students' writing experience in content area classrooms. Informed by systemic functional linguistics, this study examined 11 ELL students' writing experience in two sixth grade science classrooms in a southeastern state of the United States, including what they wrote, how they wrote, and why they wrote in the way they did. The written products produced by these students over one semester were collected. Also collected were teacher interviews, field notes from classroom observations, and classroom artifacts. Student writing samples were first categorized into extended and nonextended writing categories, and each extended essay was then analyzed with respect to its schematic structure and grammatical features. Teacher interviews and classroom observation notes were analyzed thematically to identify teacher expectations, beliefs, and practices regarding writing instruction for ELLs. It was found that the sixth-grade ELLs engaged in mostly non-extended writing in the science classroom, with extended writing (defined as writing a paragraph or longer) constituting roughly 11% of all writing assignments. Linguistic analysis of extended writing shows that the students (a) conveyed information through nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbial groups and prepositional phrases; (b) constructed interpersonal context through choices of mood, modality, and verb tense; and (c) structured text through thematic choices and conjunctions. The appropriateness of these lexicogrammatical choices for particular writing tasks was related to the students' English language proficiency levels. The linguistic analysis also uncovered several grammatical problems in the students' writing, including a limited range of word choices, inappropriate use of mood, inconsistency of verb tense, and overuse of reiterating thematic patterns and everyday conjunctions to structure and organize their writing. Thematic analysis of teacher interviews and classroom observations revealed that the teachers (a) held different expectations for English language learners than mainstream students, (b) rarely provided explicit instruction on science writing, and (c) did not see themselves as having a shared responsibility of teaching writing in their subject area, despite acknowledgement of the essential role that writing plays in promoting scientific literacy. These findings provide a snapshot of the writing experience that sixth-grade English language learners had in their science classrooms. They suggest that the ELLs needed language and literacy support in science learning, but such support was largely absent in the science classrooms. The implications of the findings for science teaching and teacher education, along with the limitations of the study, are discussed.

Experiencing Technology Integration in Education: Children's Perceptions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baytak, Ahmet; Tarman, Bülent; Ayas, Cemalettin

2011-01-01

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the experiences of six children using technologies in their education. Data were collected via in-depth interviews, classroom observations, and home observations. The results showed that students have common perceptions toward their experience with technology integration. Furthermore, the…

Struggling to Move Beyond Projection: A Case Study of Instructional Use of an Interactive White Board in Elementary Social Studies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sheffield, Caroline C.

2015-01-01

Interactive whiteboards (IWBs) are increasingly prevalent in U.S. classrooms. Yet, little is known about how this tool is being used to teach social studies. This case study through classroom observations, interviews, and student focus groups examines how two fifth-grade teachers use the IWB to teach U.S. history. The data indicate that when the…

An "Appropriate" Test Taker: The Everyday Classroom during the National Testing Period in School Year Three in Sweden

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Silfver, Eva; Sjöberg, Gunnar; Bagger, Anette

2016-01-01

This article draws on data from a bigger project where we explore what is taking place in the daily life of classrooms during the national testing period in mathematics for 9-10-year-old children in Sweden. Data were produced by observations, video-recordings and interviews with children. The article shows on a micro level how assessment trends,…

Two-year process evaluation of a pilot program to increase elementary children's physical activity during school.

PubMed

Webster, Collin A; Weaver, R Glenn; Egan, Cate A; Brian, Ali; Vazou, Spyridoula

2018-04-01

The purpose of this study was to examine implementation processes in elementary classrooms during a 2-year (Fall 2014 to Spring 2016) pilot intervention program, Partnerships for Active Children in Elementary Schools (PACES). We examined (a) the effect of PACES on the extent of movement integration (MI) and (b) changes in teachers' perceptions regarding MI. Purposively selected classrooms (grades 1-3) across four schools (3 intervention, 1 control) participated in the study. The sample included classroom teachers (N = 12) in Fall 2014 and Spring 2015, but the number of participants dropped to eight in Fall 2015 and Spring 2016. PACES consisted of three partnership approaches (a virtual community of practice, community-based participatory research, and university service learning) intended to increase the extent of MI in the intervention classrooms. We collected process data using the System for Observing Student Movement in Academic Routines and Transitions (SOSMART) and teacher interviews. PACES did not significantly impact the extent of observed MI. Interviews indicated that the intervention had both strengths and limitations. Building interpersonal support for teachers is important to their use of MI. A different measurement schedule (e.g., collecting MI data each day of the school week) may be required to more thoroughly capture MI instances. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Modern Scientific Literacy: A Case Study of Multiliteracies and Scientific Practices in a Fifth Grade Classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Allison, Elizabeth; Goldston, M. Jenice

2018-01-01

This study investigates the convergence of multiliteracies and scientific practices in a fifth grade classroom. As students' lives become increasingly multimodal, diverse, and globalized, the traditional notions of literacy must be revisited (New London Group 1996). With the adoption of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS Lead States 2013a) in many states, either in their entirety or in adapted forms, it becomes useful to explore the interconnectedness multiliteracies and scientific practices and the resulting implications for scientific literacy. The case study included a fifth grade classroom, including the students and teacher. In order to create a rich description of the cases involved, data were collected and triangulated through teacher interviews, student interviews and focus groups, and classroom observations. Findings reveal that as science activities were enriched with multiliteracies and scientific practices, students were engaged in developing skills and knowledge central to being scientifically literate. Furthermore, this study establishes that characteristics of scientific literacy, by its intent and purpose, are a form of multiliteracies in elementary classrooms. Therefore, the teaching and learning of science and its practices for scientific literacy are in turn reinforcing the development of broader multiliteracies.

From the teacher's eyes: facilitating teachers noticings on informal formative assessments (IFAs) and exploring the challenges to effective implementation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sezen-Barrie, Asli; Kelly, Gregory J.

2017-01-01

This study focuses on teachers' use of informal formative assessments (IFAs) aimed at improving students' learning and teachers' recognition of students' learning processes. The study was designed as an explorative case study of four middle school teachers and their students at a charter school in the northeastern U.S.A. The data collected for the study included a history of teaching questionnaire, video records of the teachers' IFA practices, ethnographic interviews with teachers, and field notes from classroom observations. These data were analysed from a sociolinguistic perspective focusing on the ways that classroom discourse and reflective interview conversations constructed ways of viewing assessment. The findings from the analysis of the classroom discourse showed that teachers use three different types of IFA cycles, labelled as connected, non-connected, and repeating. Teachers' reflections on video cases show that teachers can learn to view in-the-moment interactions in new ways that can guide IFAs. We concluded that teachers' perspectives on the effectiveness of IFAs are an important, but often neglected, part of building a robust, interactive classroom assessment portfolio.

Exploring How Second Grade Elementary Teachers Translate Their Nature of Science Views into Classroom Practice After a Graduate Level Nature of Science Course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deniz, Hasan; Adibelli, Elif

2015-12-01

The main purpose of this study was to explore the factors mediating the translation of second grade teachers' nature of science (NOS) views into classroom practice after completing a graduate level NOS course. Four second grade in-service elementary teachers comprised the sample of this study. Data were collected from several sources during the course of this study. The primary data sources were (a) assessment of the elementary teachers' NOS views before and after the graduate level NOS course using the Views of Nature of Science Questionnaire Version B (VNOS-B) (Lederman et al., 2002) coupled with interviews, and (b) a classroom observation and videotaped recording of the elementary teachers' best NOS lessons coupled with interview. We identified three distinct but related factors that mediated the translation of NOS views into classroom practice: the teachers' perspectives about the developmental appropriateness of the NOS aspect, the teachers' selection of target NOS aspects, and the relative importance placed by teachers on each NOS aspect.

Exploring the variability in how educators attend to science classroom interactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gillespie, Colleen Elizabeth

Many researchers assert educators must develop a shared instructional vision in order for schools to be effective. While this research tends to focus on educators' alignment around goals of science classrooms, I argue that we can't assume that educators agree on what they see when they look at science classrooms. In this dissertation, I explore the variability in what teachers and leaders notice in science classroom episodes and how they reason about what they notice. I ground my studies in real classroom practice: a videotaped lesson in the first study and a live classroom observation in the second. In Chapter 2, I discuss the importance of grounding discussions about teaching and learning in classroom artifacts, a commitment that motivates my dissertation: educators may have a shared vision when discussing teaching and learning in the abstract but disagree about whether that vision is being realized in a classroom. I then describe and analyze the video clip I used in my interviews, highlighting moments that I consider to be good teaching and learning. In Chapter 3, I present my first study, in which I showed this episode to 15 different science teachers, science instructional leaders, and principals. I found that participants attended to many different features in the episode, which led to significant disagreement about what is happening in the episode. Additionally, I found that these differences in attention corresponded to differences in how participants were framing the activity of watching the clip. In Chapter 4, I explore the attentional variability of one science instructional leader, Valerie, in multiple contexts. In addition to interviewing Valerie about the videotaped lesson, I also observed Valerie engage in an "observation cycle" with a teacher. Even though Valerie is quite skilled at attending to student thinking in some contexts, I found that Valerie's attention is strongly context-dependent and gets pulled away from students' scientific thinking when she uses a district mandated form. Finally, in Chapter 5 I summarize my findings and describe the implications my work has for both research and practice.

Hyphenated Identities of Korean Heritage Language Learners: Marginalization, Colonial Discourses and Internalized Whiteness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shin, Jeeweon

2016-01-01

Drawing on the data collected through classroom observations, participants' written journals, and in-depth interviews, this study examines the hyphenated identity constructions of 1.5- ("ilcem osey") and 2nd-generation heritage language learners. The study observes that ethnic and racial exclusion in a White dominant society was more…

The Impact of a Professional Development Program on English Language Teachers' Classroom Performance (El impacto de un programa de desarrollo profesional en el desempeño en clase de profesores de lengua inglesa)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Giraldo, Frank

2014-01-01

This article reports the findings of an action research study on a professional development program and its impact on the classroom performance of in-service English teachers who worked at a language institute of a Colombian state university. Questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, class observations, and a researcher's journal were used as…

Teachers' perceptions and actions in carrying out communication policies in a public school for the deaf.

PubMed

Hsing, M H; Lowenbraun, S

1997-03-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate teachers' opinions on school communication policies in a public school for the Deaf in Taipei, Taiwan. Specifically, the authors examined how teachers carried out communication policies, and examined possible discrepancies between teachers' perceptions of their communication methods and the methods they actually used in the classroom. Questionnaires were distributed to all 120 teachers at Taipei Municipal School for the Deaf. Thirteen of the 85 respondents were selected as subjects for personal interviews followed by direct classroom observation and videotaping. Sixteen deaf high school seniors at the school were interviewed concerning their opinions about the teachers' communication modes and abilities, and about the communication modes the students experienced.

The third space: The use of self-study to examine the culture of a science classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Magee, Dashia M.

Science educators are in the position to create bridges between their students and the world of science (Aikenhead, 1996, 1999). This connection has often been described as the third space (Bhabha, 1994; Moje, Collazo, Carrillo, & Marx, 2001; Wallace, 2004), which is represented as a combination or a meeting of the students' world and the world of science. In this study, I examined my role in creating the third space through the use of self-study. Self-study is a form of research, educators use to understand their practice (Austin & Senese, 2004; Loughran, 2004; Northfield & Loughran, 1996). It is a means of describing, analyzing, and interpreting a teacher's actions within his or her classroom (Tidwell, 2002). The focal point of this self-study is to understand my actions found within my past and present teaching experiences and the underlying beliefs that are expressed through those actions. In this self-study, I collected data from my life history, classroom observations, and member check interview. My life history described my influences that shaped my philosophy of teaching and learning, while the classroom observations provided a means of understanding my interactions with the science curriculum and my English Language Learner (ELL) students. And finally, a member check focus group interview occurred to confirm the results occurring in the classroom observations. Once the data were collected, I used grounded theory methods to analyze my results and answer the research questions. This self-study became the means of exploring my philosophy of teaching and learning and my teaching practices as they occurred in an ELL science classroom. I examined my own practice through a comparison between my past experiences and my current teaching situation and through this exploration, I identified my actions and the beliefs associated with those actions as they informed my teaching practices.

Teacher Educator's and Guidance Teachers' Evaluation of Student Teachers' Teaching Practice: A Qualitative Study = Procjena nastavne prakse studenata--buducih ucitelja--od mentora i savjetnika (kvalitativna studija)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Göçer, Ali

2013-01-01

The aim of this study was to determine whether student teachers are sufficiently prepared for teaching practice in primary schools. In this study, student teachers' teaching practice in real classrooms was evaluated by using observation and interview methods. For this purpose, interviews were conducted with seven guidance teachers, and each…

The use of computer simulations in whole-class versus small-group settings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smetana, Lara Kathleen

This study explored the use of computer simulations in a whole-class as compared to small-group setting. Specific consideration was given to the nature and impact of classroom conversations and interactions when computer simulations were incorporated into a high school chemistry course. This investigation fills a need for qualitative research that focuses on the social dimensions of actual classrooms. Participants included a novice chemistry teacher experienced in the use of educational technologies and two honors chemistry classes. The study was conducted in a rural school in the south-Atlantic United States at the end of the fall 2007 semester. The study took place during one instructional unit on atomic structure. Data collection allowed for triangulation of evidence from a variety of sources approximately 24 hours of video- and audio-taped classroom observations, supplemented with the researcher's field notes and analytic journal; miscellaneous classroom artifacts such as class notes, worksheets, and assignments; open-ended pre- and post-assessments; student exit interviews; teacher entrance, exit and informal interviews. Four web-based simulations were used, three of which were from the ExploreLearning collection. Assessments were analyzed using descriptive statistics and classroom observations, artifacts and interviews were analyzed using Erickson's (1986) guidelines for analytic induction. Conversational analysis was guided by methods outlined by Erickson (1982). Findings indicated (a) the teacher effectively incorporated simulations in both settings (b) students in both groups significantly improved their understanding of the chemistry concepts (c) there was no statistically significant difference between groups' achievement (d) there was more frequent exploratory talk in the whole-class group (e) there were more frequent and meaningful teacher-student interactions in the whole-class group (f) additional learning experiences not measured on the assessment resulted from conversations and interactions in the whole-class setting (g) the potential benefits of exploratory talk in the whole-class setting were not fully realized. These findings suggest that both whole-class and small-group settings are appropriate for using computer simulations in science. The effective incorporation of simulations into whole-class instruction may provide a solution to the dilemma of technology penetration versus integration in today's classrooms.

Audio-Enhanced Technology Strengthens Community Building in the Online Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weber, Michele C.; Dereshiwsky, Mary

2013-01-01

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of students in an audio-enhanced online classroom. Online students who had participated in such a classroom experience were interviewed. The interviews were analyzed to explain the students' experiences with the technology online and show how each student perceived the…

Making the informal formal: An examination of why and how teachers and students leverage experiences in informal learning environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schneider, Barbara P.

This study was an effort to understand the impact of informal learning environments (museums, aquaria, nature centers, and outdoor education programs) on school groups by developing a picture of why and how teachers and their students leverage experiences in these settings. This work relied on the self-reported visions for science education of formal and informal teachers as a means of creating a portrait or profile of the teacher visitor thus providing a new way to assess the quality of informal visits based on vision elements. Multi-level, year long case studies at six school sites and their partnering informal centers that included multiple interviews, observations (250 hours) of both school based and field trip activities, as well as focus group interviews with students two months past their field trip experience comprised the bulk of data collection activities. In addition to this more intensive work with case study teachers data was gathered from a broader group of participants through surveys (n = 396) and one-time classroom teacher interviews (n = 36) in an effort to validate or confirm case study findings. I discovered that central to informal and formal teachers' visions was a view of education as empowerment. I explored such goals as empowering students to conceive of themselves and their worlds differently, empowering students by sharing responsibility for what and how they learn, and empowering students by creating environments where everyone can contribute meaningfully. Much of what classroom teachers did to leverage the informal experience in supporting their visions of education related to these goals. For example teachers used shared experiences in informal settings as a way for their students to gain better access to and understanding of the classroom curriculum thereby increasing student participation and allowing more students to be successful. They also changed their approach to content by basing the classroom curriculum on students' interests and questions raised during visits to informal settings. Consequently teachers noted their students were better able to connect to traditional elements of school as a result of their informal experiences. Personal growth of students was also a major area of change. Increases in self-esteem, fieldtrip and classroom participation, as well as improved classroom behavior were reported and observed and improved the way the classroom functioned.

Implementation of National Science Education Standards in suburban elementary schools: Teachers' perceptions and classroom practices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khan, Rubina Samer

2005-07-01

This was an interpretive qualitative study that focused on how three elementary school science teachers from three different public schools perceived and implemented the National Science Education Standards based on the Reformed Teaching Observation Protocol and individual interviews with the teachers. This study provided an understanding of the standards movement and teacher change in the process. Science teachers who were experienced with the National Science Education Standards were selected as the subjects of the study. Grounded in the theory of teacher change, this study's phenomenological premise was that the extent to which a new reform has an effect on students' learning and achievement on standardized tests depends on the content a teacher teaches as well as the style of teaching. It was therefore necessary to explore how teachers understand and implement the standards in the classrooms. The surveys, interviews and observations provided rich data from teachers' intentions, reflections and actions on the lessons that were observed while also providing the broader contextual framework for the understanding of the teachers' perspectives.

'can i get your Email': Gender, Networking and Social Capital in AN Undergraduate Bioengineering Classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Erickson, Shelley K.

Based on observations and interviews, this article explores how female and male biomedical engineering students network and generate social capital (who one knows) in an undergraduate classroom. Stark differences were observed between female and male students and their interactions with a series of guest lecturers. Although women engineering students may be differentially affected by how they raise their social capital, this study does not suggest that women engineering students are wholly incapable of raising their social capital. Rather, a disconnect occurs between the student population receiving information about networking and women students acting on informal and spontaneous opportunities as they arise. Institutional and departmental support (i.e., internship programs and discussion in the classroom and at orientation) appears to favor those who rely on more formal means of networking.

Partnerships for Active Children in Elementary Schools (PACES): First year process evaluation.

PubMed

Egan, Cate A; Webster, Collin; Weaver, R Glenn; Brian, Ali; Stodden, David; Russ, Laura; Nesbitt, Danielle; Vazou, Spyridoula

2018-04-01

Movement integration (MI) is a strategy within comprehensive school physical activity programs (CSPAP). School-university partnerships are recommended to leverage teachers' capacity to use MI. A mixed method process evaluation was conducted of the first year of implementing Partnerships for Active Children in Elementary Schools (PACES). Classroom teachers (N=12) from four schools participated. Data were collected in Fall 2014 (baseline) and Spring 2015 (∼ four months of intervention) using the System for Observing Student Movement in Academic Routines and Transitions and semi-structured interviews. There were no significant differences between intervention classrooms and control classrooms MI promotion. Differences approaching significance (U=5, p=0.04, d=1.2) were observed when comparing classrooms that received two (community of practice, community-based participatory research) or three components (two components plus service learning) of the intervention and classrooms that received one (community of practice) or no components. Qualitative findings revealed that teachers in classrooms that were more successful responded more favorably to the intervention components than teachers in classrooms that were less successful. Quantitative and qualitative results supported the effectiveness of community-based participatory research as a component of PACES. This study provides information about MI process variables in the context of a CSPAP intervention. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

David's Understanding of Functions and Periodicity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gerson, Hope

2008-01-01

This is a study of David, a senior enrolled in a high school precalculus course. David's understandings of functions and periodicity was explored, through clinical interviews and contextualized through classroom observations. Although David's precalculus class was traditional his understanding of periodic functions was unconventional David engaged…

Transforming Professional Learning into Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sahin, Iclal; Yildirim, Ali

2016-01-01

In this qualitative case study, we explored how ten EFL teachers who attended an in-service staff development programme subsequently integrated professional learning into their classroom practice, and which staff development practices were effective in this process. We triangulated data from interviews, observations, and document analysis. The…

Technology Integration through Professional Learning Community

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cifuentes, Lauren; Maxwell, Gerri; Bulu, Sanser

2011-01-01

We describe efforts to build a learning community to support technology integration in three rural school districts and the contributions of various program strategies toward teacher growth. The Stages of Adoption Inventory, classroom observations, the Questionnaire for Technology Integration, interviews, STAR evaluation surveys, a survey of…

Pre-Instructional Conceptions about Transformations of Substances.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pfundt, Helga

Findings generated from past classroom observation and individual interviews indicate that certain framework conceptions can be identified by which students explain special transformations of substances and which are activated in view of new experiences made in the course of chemistry instruction. This study investigated these framework…

Single-Sex Classes in Co-Educational Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wills, Robin; Kilpatrick, Sue; Hutton, Biddy

2006-01-01

This research investigated social and academic outcomes from single-sex classrooms in a Tasmanian coeducational government primary school. Interviews, observations and surveys formed the basis of the evidence. Teachers, parents and children reported positive benefits from the class organisation, but these differed according to gender. Staff…

Educational Research in an Introductory Astronomy Course.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hemenway, Mary Kay; Straits, William J.; Wilke, R. Russell; Hufnagel, Beth

2002-01-01

Used classroom observations, personal interviews, and pre-instruction/post-instruction administration of the Texas Attitude Survey and the Astronomy Diagnostic Test to evaluate hands-on instructional innovations in a college astronomy course. Modified instruction based on student concerns; scores for the second course showed significant…

Inclusive science education: learning from Wizard

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koomen, Michele Hollingsworth

2016-06-01

This case study reports on a student with special education needs in an inclusive seventh grade life science classroom using a framework of disability studies in education. Classroom data collected over 13 weeks consisted of qualitative (student and classroom observations, interviews, student work samples and video-taped classroom teaching and learning record using CETP-COP) methods. Three key findings emerged in the analysis and synthesis of the data: (1) The learning experiences in science for Wizard are marked by a dichotomy straddled between autonomy ["Sometimes I do" (get it)] and dependence ["Sometimes I don't (get it)], (2) the process of learning is fragmented for Wizard because it is underscored by an emerging disciplinary literacy, (3) the nature of the inclusion is fragile and functional. Implications for classroom practices that support students with learning disabilities include focusing on student strengths, intentional use of disciplinary literacy strategies, and opportunities for eliciting student voice in decision making.

Chemistry Teachers' Emerging Expertise in Inquiry Teaching: The Effect of a Professional Development Model on Beliefs and Practice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rushton, Gregory T.; Lotter, Christine; Singer, Jonathan

2011-02-01

This study investigates the beliefs and practices of seven high school chemistry teachers as a result of their participation in a year-long inquiry professional development (PD) project. An analysis of oral interviews, written reflections, and in-class observations were used to determine the extent to which the PD affected the teachers' beliefs and practice. The data indicated that the teachers developed more complete conceptions of classroom inquiry, valued a "phenomena first" approach to scientific investigations, and viewed inquiry approaches as helpful for facilitating improved student thinking. Analysis of classroom observations with the Reformed Teaching Observation Protocol indicated that features of the PD were observed in the teachers' practice during the academic year follow-up. Implications for effective science teacher professional development models are discussed.

Investigating the impact of a LEGO(TM)-based, engineering-oriented curriculum compared to an inquiry-based curriculum on fifth graders' content learning of simple machines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marulcu, Ismail

This mixed method study examined the impact of a LEGO-based, engineering-oriented curriculum compared to an inquiry-based curriculum on fifth graders' content learning of simple machines. This study takes a social constructivist theoretical stance that science learning involves learning scientific concepts and their relations to each other. From this perspective, students are active participants, and they construct their conceptual understanding through the guidance of their teacher. With the goal of better understanding the use of engineering education materials in classrooms the National Academy of Engineering and National Research Council in the book "Engineering in K-12 Education" conducted an in-depth review of the potential benefits of including engineering in K--12 schools as (a) improved learning and achievement in science and mathematics, (b) increased awareness of engineering and the work of engineers, (c) understanding of and the ability to engage in engineering design, (d) interest in pursuing engineering as a career, and (e) increased technological literacy (Katehi, Pearson, & Feder, 2009). However, they also noted a lack of reliable data and rigorous research to support these assertions. Data sources included identical written tests and interviews, classroom observations and videos, teacher interviews, and classroom artifacts. To investigate the impact of the design-based simple machines curriculum compared to the scientific inquiry-based simple machines curriculum on student learning outcomes, I compared the control and the experimental groups' scores on the tests and interviews by using ANCOVA. To analyze and characterize the classroom observation videotapes, I used Jordan and Henderson's (1995) method and divide them into episodes. My analyses revealed that the design-based Design a People Mover: Simple Machines unit was, if not better, as successful as the inquiry-based FOSS Levers and Pulleys unit in terms of students' content learning. I also found that students in the engineering group outperformed students in the control group in regards to their ability to answer open-ended questions when interviewed. Implications for students' science content learning and teachers' professional development are discussed.

Does Home Hinder Professional Commitment? The Case of Early Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Seifert, Kelvin L.; Atkinson, Laura E.

1991-01-01

Uses classroom observations and interviews to examine three kindergarten teachers' perceptions, focusing on gender-related differences in the balance between home and work and the development of internalized commitment. Suggests ways to make teaching a more aesthetic experience for family caregivers. Includes 19 references. (MLH)

Characteristics of a Good Programming Teacher.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kushan, Barbara

This paper identifies characteristics of a "good" programming teacher, derived from a study of four teachers in charge of beginning courses in BASIC programming language at high schools in the Greater Kansas City area. In addition to doing classroom observation, the researcher interviewed the teachers themselves, students, and the…

Fighting for Respect in Urban High Schools.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hemmings, Annette

2003-01-01

Explored the crisis of respect needed to establish authority in two urban public high schools. Data from observations and interviews indicated that in classrooms, battles for respect involved defending the dominant educational regime and control over the daily regimen of pedagogical practice. In corridors, students moved between mainstream…

A Phenomenologicial Narrative Study of African American Male Community College Instructors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wallace, Jerry L.

2014-01-01

This qualitative phenomenological research study used narrative inquiry to explore the lived experiences of African American male community college instructors using interviews, classroom observations, and personal testimonies conducted at a Southeast Texas community college. Brown (2009) previously conducted a study on African American male…

Beliefs and Practices of Writing Instruction in Japanese Elementary Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Spence, Lucy K.; Kite, Yuriko

2018-01-01

Focusing on writing instruction within an era of international curricular reform, this study analysed classroom observations, educator interviews, and documents related to Japanese elementary writing instruction. A deductive approach using discourses of writing framework and an inductive approach to Japanese cultural practices uncovered beliefs…

Student-Created Digital Media and Engagement in Middle School History

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alexander, Curby

2014-01-01

In this study, student engagement during classroom activities was investigated where sixth graders created digital media projects using historical images. The study employed a qualitative design involving observations, student artifacts, and interviews while students were creating digital storyboards using a Web-based application developed for…

Translanguaging as Dynamic Activity Flows in CLIL Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lin, Angel M. Y.; He, Peichang

2017-01-01

In this article, the role of translanguaging in facilitating content and language integrated learning (CLIL) is examined in connection with the notion of academic language across the curriculum in multilingual contexts. Ethnographic naturalistic observations and interviews were conducted to analyse translanguaging in the dynamic flow of…

Transitioning to Inquiry-Based Teaching: Exploring Science Teachers' Professional Development Experiences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kazempour, Mahsa; Amirshokoohi, Aidin

2014-01-01

The literature on professional development is replete with studies that utilize survey, interview, and classroom observation data, primarily collected post professional development experience, to explore teachers' knowledge, beliefs, and actions; however, we lack a clear understanding of teachers' learning process and reflections during the…

There is another choice: an exploration of integrating formative assessment in a Chinese high school chemistry classroom through collaborative action research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yin, Xinying; Buck, Gayle A.

2015-09-01

This study explored integrating formative assessment to a Chinese high school chemistry classroom, where the extremely high-stakes testing and Confucian-heritage culture constituted a particular context, through a collaborative action research. One researcher worked with a high school chemistry teacher in China to integrate formative assessment into his teaching with 54 students in one of his classes. Data resources included transcripts from planning sessions, lesson plans, teacher interviews, classroom observations, student work, student interviews and surveys. The findings of this study revealed that as the teacher allowed his original views about students' learning and assessment tasks to be challenged by the students' learning, his teaching practice and understandings of formative assessment were transformed. Students' learning experience was also examined in the formative assessment process. The potentials and challenges of integrating formative assessment in the Chinese high school science classroom are discussed. This study indicated that formative assessment is promising to implement in Chinese high school science classrooms to enhance students' learning and meet the imperative needs for high-stakes exam preparation as well; and writing formative assessment tasks are favorable in this particular socio-cultural context. Further, this study suggested that facilitating in-service science teachers to integrate formative assessment through collaborative action research is a powerful professional development on improving teaching and learning under the highly constraint context.

Implementation of case studies in undergraduate didactic nursing courses: a qualitative study.

PubMed

Dutra, Danette K

2013-07-04

The implementation of unfolding scenario-based case studies in the didactic classroom is associated with learner-centered education. The utilization of learner-centered pedagogies, such as case studies, removes the focus from the instructor and instead places it on the student. Learner-centered pedagogies are believed to improve students' levels of cognition. The purpose of this study was to examine how nurse educators are implementing the pedagogies of case studies in their undergraduate didactic courses. The goal was to examine, document, report, and, ultimately, implement the strategies. Purposeful sampling was utilized in this qualitative, multisite-designed study. For each of the four participants, three separate site visits were completed. Observations and post-observational interviews took place at each site visit. Transcribed data from interviews, observations, and course documents were imported into the computer program Nvivo8. Repetitive comparative analysis was utilized to complete the data coding process. The guiding research question of this study sought to investigate the implementation strategies of case studies in didactic nursing courses. The implementation of case studies by the participants reflected two primary patterns: Formal Implementation (FI) and Informal Implementation (II) of case studies. The FI of case studies was further divided into two subcategories: Formal Implementation of case studies used Inside the Classroom setting (FIIC) and Formal Implementation of cases studies used Outside of the Classroom (FIOC). Results of this investigation have led to an increased understanding of implementation strategies of unfolding scenario-based case studies in undergraduate nursing didactic courses. Data collected were rich in the description of specific methodologies for utilization of case studies and may serve as a resource for faculty in development of creative strategies to enhance the didactic classroom experience.

Implementation of case studies in undergraduate didactic nursing courses: a qualitative study

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background The implementation of unfolding scenario-based case studies in the didactic classroom is associated with learner-centered education. The utilization of learner-centered pedagogies, such as case studies, removes the focus from the instructor and instead places it on the student. Learner-centered pedagogies are believed to improve students’ levels of cognition. The purpose of this study was to examine how nurse educators are implementing the pedagogies of case studies in their undergraduate didactic courses. The goal was to examine, document, report, and, ultimately, implement the strategies. Methods Purposeful sampling was utilized in this qualitative, multisite-designed study. For each of the four participants, three separate site visits were completed. Observations and post-observational interviews took place at each site visit. Transcribed data from interviews, observations, and course documents were imported into the computer program Nvivo8. Repetitive comparative analysis was utilized to complete the data coding process. Results The guiding research question of this study sought to investigate the implementation strategies of case studies in didactic nursing courses. The implementation of case studies by the participants reflected two primary patterns: Formal Implementation (FI) and Informal Implementation (II) of case studies. The FI of case studies was further divided into two subcategories: Formal Implementation of case studies used Inside the Classroom setting (FIIC) and Formal Implementation of cases studies used Outside of the Classroom (FIOC). Conclusion Results of this investigation have led to an increased understanding of implementation strategies of unfolding scenario-based case studies in undergraduate nursing didactic courses. Data collected were rich in the description of specific methodologies for utilization of case studies and may serve as a resource for faculty in development of creative strategies to enhance the didactic classroom experience. PMID:23826925

Teacher research experiences, epistemology, and student attitudes toward science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Payne, Diana L.

This concurrent mixed methods research study examined the impact of a Teacher Research Experience (TRE) on science teacher beliefs about science, scientific research, science teaching, and student attitudes toward science. Surveys, interviews, reflective journals, and classroom observations of six teachers involved in a TRE were utilized to examine changes in beliefs as a result of participation in the TRE. Student attitudes were measured with a pre and post survey. An analysis of qualitative data from the teachers' interviews, journals, and pre and post TRE surveys indicated that some change occurred in their beliefs about science and scientists for all six teachers, and that teachers' beliefs about science teaching were affected in a variety of ways after participating in the TRE. The quantitative results of the study using Science Teachers' Beliefs About Science (STBAS) instrument suggest that the change from the beginning to the end of the school year, if any, was minimal. However, interviews with and observations of teachers identified valuable components of the TRE, such as the advanced resources (e.g., DVD, samples), a feeling of rejuvenation in teaching, a new perspective on science and scientific research, and first hand experiences in science. Results from the classroom observations using the Science Classroom Practice Record (SCPR) were mixed. Some differences may be explained, however, as relating to content taught in the pre and post classes observed or simply to inherent differences in student dynamics and behavior from class to class. There were no significant differences from pre to post TRE regarding student attitudes toward science as measured by paired samples t-tests on the modified Attitudes Toward Science (mATSI) instrument. Attitudes and beliefs are not easily changed, and change is more likely to result from direct experience and education rather than an indirect experience. Although the results are generalizable only to the participants in this study, the findings have the potential to inform other types of TRE professional development efforts of different design, duration, and location.

Usefulness of assessment techniques in assessing classification for emotional disturbance and generating classroom recommendations.

PubMed

Cheramie, G M; Griffin, K M; Morgan, T

2000-02-01

A national survey of specialist school psychologists examined the perceived usefulness of assessment techniques in making decisions regarding eligibility for the educational classification of emotional disturbance and in generating classroom recommendations. Analysis showed measures rated as most useful were interviews with the parent, teacher, and student, observations of the student, and norm-referenced rating scales. Projective techniques were least useful. These findings are important in the context of "best practices" for the multidimensional assessment of emotional disturbance which promotes a more direct link between assessment and intervention.

Effective science teaching in a high poverty middle school: A case study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meyer, Georgette Wright

This qualitative case study described the characteristics of science teachers in a high poverty urban middle school whose 2010 scores on South Carolina's Palmetto Assessment of State Standards (PASS) ranked second in the state. Data was obtained through classroom observations, open-ended interviews, school documents, and photographs taken inside the school from ten participants, who were seven science teachers, a science coach, and two administrators. Findings revealed a school culture that pursued warm and caring relationships with students while communicating high expectations for achievement, strong central leadership who communicated their vision and continuously checked for its implementation through informal conversations, frequent classroom observations, and test score analysis. A link between participants' current actions and their perception of prior personal and professional experiences was found. Participants related their classroom actions to the lives of the students outside of school, and evidenced affection for their students.

From Sorting to Learning: Developing Deep Learning in Canadian Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kaser, Linda; Halbert, Judy

2008-01-01

Observations in many intermediate and secondary classrooms and interviews with learners indicate that many young people are under-engaged or disengaged with the learning opportunities in their schools. This disengagement of adolescent learners underlines the need for a shift from systems focused on sorting to systems passionate about deep…

Technology Integration in the Schools of Guyana: A Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

MacKinnon, Gregory; MacKinnon, Paula

2010-01-01

The following study examines the implementation of learning technologies in Guyana, South America. Specifically, the study addresses the impact of using interactive radio instruction for teaching mathematics and SuccessMaker software for enhancing literacy skills. The research results were based on surveys, interviews, classroom observations, and…

Reciprocal and Complementary Sibling Interactions: Relations with Socialization Outcomes in the Kindergarten Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harrist, Amanda W.; Achacoso, Joseph A.; John, Aesha; Pettit, Gregory S.; Bates, John E.; Dodge, Kenneth A.

2014-01-01

Research Findings: In this examination of associations between sibling interaction patterns and later social outcomes in single- and 2-parent families, 113 kindergarteners took part in naturalistic observations at home with siblings, classmates participated in sociometric interviews, and teachers completed behavior ratings. Sibling interactions…

New Pedagogies on Teaching Science with Computer Simulations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Khan, Samia

2011-01-01

Teaching science with computer simulations is a complex undertaking. This case study examines how an experienced science teacher taught chemistry using computer simulations and the impact of his teaching on his students. Classroom observations over 3 semesters, teacher interviews, and student surveys were collected. The data was analyzed for (1)…

Early Primary Literacy Instruction in Kenya

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dubeck, Margaret M.; Jukes, Matthew C. H.; Okello, George

2012-01-01

We report on a study that used observations, conversations, and formal interviews to explore literacy instruction in 24 lower-primary classrooms in coastal Kenya. Specifically, we report the ways literacy instruction is delivered and how that delivery aligns with practices understood to promote reading acquisition. We find (1) prioritization of…

Veterans Education: Coming Home to the Community College Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Persky, Karen Rae

2010-01-01

The purpose of this study was to identify the needs of veterans who are community college students and to examine community college programs and services essential to meeting their needs. A qualitative case study design using interviews, observations, field notes, document reviews, a focus group, and a preinterview demographic questionnaire…

Death as Insight into Life: Adolescents' Gothic Text Encounters

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Del Nero, Jennifer

2017-01-01

This qualitative case study explores adolescents' responses to texts containing death and destruction, a seminal trope of the Gothic literary genre. Participants read both classic and popular culture texts featuring characters grappling with death in their seventh grade reading classroom. Observations, interviews, and documents were collected and…

A Framework for Understanding Teachers' Promotion of Students' Metacognition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ader, Engin

2013-01-01

This is an ethnographic study of promotion of metacognition, focusing on the teaching practices in secondary mathematics classrooms of three teachers in the UK. With all three teachers, observations of their teaching and interviews regarding their teaching were conducted. The main aim was analysing and substantiating the parallels and differences…

Making the Invisible Visible: Race, Gender, and Teaching in Adult Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Angela H.; Cervero, Ronald M.; Johnson-Bailey, Juanita

2000-01-01

Interviews and observations of seven African-American female math teachers in postsecondary institutions showed how their positionality affected their experiences by (1) producing a teaching philosophy based on a history of marginalization; (2) raising credibility issues because of race and gender; and (3) affecting classroom interaction and…

Student Resistance to Schooling: Disconnections with Education in Rural Appalachia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hendrickson, Katie A.

2012-01-01

This study investigates student reasons for resisting engagement with school in a rural Appalachian area. The concept of student resistance to school is considered within a White, working-class student population. Through classroom observations, students displaying resistant behaviors were selected to participate in interviews. Coding of interview…

Effectiveness of Using Games in Tertiary-Level Mathematics Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Afari, Ernest; Aldridge, Jill M.; Fraser, Barry J.

2012-01-01

The primary focus of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of games when used in tertiary-level mathematics classes in the United Arab Emirates. Our study incorporated a mixed-method approach that involved surveys (to assess students' perceptions of the learning environment and attitudes towards mathematics), interviews, observations of…

Managing Anxiety: A Case Study of an International Teaching Assistant's Interaction with American Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhou, Ji

2014-01-01

This case study utilizes structuration theory to explore the complexities in the academic interaction between a Chinese international teaching assistant (ITA) and her American students. Through four semi-structured participant interviews, eight classroom observations, and student feedback, major themes and variations were identified regarding the…

Language Planning and Identity Planning: An Emergent Understanding.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Freeman, Rebecca

1994-01-01

This paper presents an ethnographic study of the Oyster Bilingual School in Washington, D.C., a successful two-way Spanish-English bilingual elementary school designed to produce biliterate and bicultural students. The study was based on classroom observations, interviews of students, teachers, and administrators, and an examination of school…

Mentorship of College Women in Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Khan, Samia

2008-01-01

A professor at a college for women recently was named a recipient of the U.S. Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring. Her innovations in mentoring college women in science are the focus of this case study. Using data collected from faculty interviews, classroom observations, student feedback sheets,…

Exploring the Complexity of Teacher Professional Identity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hsieh, Betina Yuan-Cheng

2010-01-01

This dissertation is based on a case study of 8 beginning English teachers who participated in a collaborative inquiry group at an urban, comprehensive, high school in the San Francisco Bay Area. Qualitative data (including audio-transcribed meeting data, individual interview data, and classroom observations) were collected over two school years,…

Student-Initiated Use of Facebook for Learning Online Journalism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Song, Yang

2017-01-01

This article presents a case study of student-initiated use of Facebook Groups in doing a team project for an online journalism course. Drawing upon the concept of affinity space and a theoretical taxonomy of asynchronous online discussion, the present study triangulates classroom observation, semi-structured student interviews, and microanalysis…

How Early Childhood Educators Are Initally Integrating Tablet Technology in the Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leonard, Jessica Alexis

2013-01-01

This qualitative research examined how two early childhood educators initially integrated tablet technology in the curriculum through classroom observation, interviews and a review of documentation. The overall question was: how are early childhood educators initially integrating tablet technologies in the curriculum? The researcher also asked…

Investigating Norms of Listening in Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sangster, Pauline; Anderson, Charles

2009-01-01

Previous research into listening has tended to focus on individual processing rather than on how sociocultural contexts mediate the nature and quality of listening. This article draws on a study involving observations of listening lessons conducted by ten English teachers regarded as skilled practitioners, interviews with these teachers and with…

Identified Phases in the Building and Maintaining of Positive Teacher-Student Relationships

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Newberry, Melissa

2010-01-01

Teacher-student relationships are accepted as influential but the dynamics of those relationships are not well understood, especially with difficult students. A series of interviews were combined with classroom observations and written reflections to understand in what ways a teacher negotiated her relationship with a behaviorally challenging…

Difficulties with Team Teaching in Hong Kong Kindergartens

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ng, Mei Lee

2015-01-01

This article draws on qualitative classroom observation and interview data from a case study of one native-English speaker teacher (NEST) teaching in a Hong Kong kindergarten. Features of the NEST's teaching are identified, namely their professional limitations, their part-time involvement in teaching, and their limited collaboration with the…

Empowering English through Project-Based Learning with ICT

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marwan, Ardi

2015-01-01

This paper reports the findings of an action research implementing project-based learning (PBL) with information and communication technology (ICT) in an English classroom. Twenty-five students from a vocational higher institution were interviewed after the conduct of three project activities over a six-week period. They were also observed while…

Challenging Teacher Beliefs about Student Engagement in Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bobis, Janette; Way, Jennifer; Anderson, Judy; Martin, Andrew J.

2016-01-01

This study explored the beliefs about student engagement in mathematics of three Year 5 and 6 teachers, focusing on the shifts that occurred during a 10-week intervention. Data obtained from teacher surveys, interviews, video-recorded workshop observations and artefacts from teachers' classrooms reveal variations in their reactions to the…

An Investigation of Literacy Practices in High School Science Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wexler, Jade; Mitchell, Marisa A.; Clancy, Erin E.; Silverman, Rebecca D.

2017-01-01

This study reports findings from an exploration of the literacy practices of 10 high school science teachers. Based on observations of teachers' instruction, we report teachers' use of text, evidence-based vocabulary and comprehension practices, and grouping practices. Based on interviews with teachers, we also report teachers' perceptions…

Teachers' Plans for Managing Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pittman, Sherry I.

A study of three first grade teachers, who were interviewed and observed in the classroom setting, demonstrates a link between teachers' plans for action that they have developed over years of teaching and their routine management of students during reading. Both management and instructional goals, embedded in teacher beliefs about learning and…

The Campaign: A Case Study in Identity Construction through Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Riddle, Matthew D.

2009-01-01

This article undertakes a detailed case study of "The Campaign", a teaching and learning innovation in media and communications that uses an online educational role-play. The case study draws on the qualitative analysis of classroom observations, online communications and semi-structured interviews, employing an interpretive approach…

Preschool Teachers' Beliefs and Practices Related to Child-Centred Education in Turkey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sak, Ramazan; Tantekin-Erden, Feyza; Morrison, George S.

2018-01-01

This study describes the beliefs, self-reported practices and actual practices related to child-centred education of five female preschool teachers in Ankara, Turkey, and assesses the consistency between the participants' beliefs and practices. Data were collected through interviews, classroom observations and document review. The results…

Fragility of Pedagogical Content Knowledge in Geography

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arenas-Martija, Andoni; Salinas-Silva, Victor; Margalef-García, Leonor; Otero-Auristondo, Maria

2017-01-01

This research aims to evaluate the geographical knowledge of nine teachers in the region of Valparaiso, Chile. An interpretive case study was conducted with data collected through classroom observations, interviews, and questionnaires, and these data were then analyzed through triangulation. The findings showed that these teachers, who are the…

"Don't Worry, I'm Not Going to Report You": Education for Citizenship in Singapore

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ho, Li-Ching

2010-01-01

This case study examined how Singapore adolescents from different socio-economic, academic, and racial backgrounds positioned themselves as citizens within a highly-regulated, centralized educational context. Through interviews, classroom observations, and the author investigated students' conceptions of citizenship and their perspectives of the…

Career Changers as First-Year High School Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anderson, Holly; Fry, Sara; Hourcade, Jack J.

2014-01-01

Individuals who change careers to assume teaching roles in secondary schools are more likely to struggle in the classroom than those without such backgrounds. In this investigation, we identified three such career-changing teachers who were beginning their education careers in rural schools, and observed and interviewed them throughout their first…

Revising Laboratory Work: Sociological Perspectives on the Science Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jobér, Anna

2017-01-01

This study uses sociological perspectives to analyse one of the core practices in science education: school children's and students' laboratory work. Applying an ethnographic approach to the laboratory work done by pupils at a Swedish compulsory school, data were generated through observations, field notes, interviews, and a questionnaire. The…

Factors Affecting the Social Experiences of Students in Elementary Physical Education Classes.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Suomi, Joanne; Collier, Douglas; Brown, Lou

2003-01-01

Examined factors that had a positive and negative effect on the social experiences of elementary students with and without disabilities in inclusive physical education classrooms. Data from observations and interviews indicated that the physical education teacher had a positive influence on students' social experiences, while cultures, student…

Cognitive Responses of Students Who Witness Classroom Cheating

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Firmin, Michael W.; Burger, Amanda; Blosser, Matthew

2007-01-01

We arranged for 82 General Psychology students (51 females, 31 males) to observe peers in a course cheating situation. Individual, in-depth, qualitative interviews following the experiment we were conducting, using rigorous coding and grounded theory methodology for analysis. Results showed students to experience particular cognitive stages as…

Teacher argumentation in the secondary science classroom: Images of two modes of scientific inquiry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gray, Ron E.

The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine scientific arguments constructed by secondary science teachers during instruction. The analysis focused on how arguments constructed by teachers differed based on the mode of inquiry underlying the topic. Specifically, how did the structure and content of arguments differ between experimentally and historically based topics? In addition, what factors mediate these differences? Four highly experienced high school science teachers were observed daily during instructional units for both experimental and historical science topics. Data sources include classroom observations, field notes, reflective memos, classroom artifacts, a nature of science survey, and teacher interviews. The arguments were analyzed for structure and content using Toulmin's argumentation pattern and Walton's schemes for presumptive reasoning revealing specific patterns of use between the two modes of inquiry. Interview data was analyzed to determine possible factors mediating these patterns. The results of this study reveal that highly experienced teachers present arguments to their students that, while simple in structure, reveal authentic images of science based on experimental and historical modes of inquiry. Structural analysis of the data revealed a common trend toward a greater amount of scientific data used to evidence knowledge claims in the historical science units. The presumptive reasoning analysis revealed that, while some presumptive reasoning schemes remained stable across the two units (e.g. 'causal inferences' and 'sign' schemes), others revealed different patterns of use including the 'analogy', 'evidence to hypothesis', 'example', and 'expert opinion' schemes. Finally, examination of the interview and survey data revealed five specific factors mediating the arguments constructed by the teachers: view of the nature of science, nature of the topic, teacher personal factors, view of students, and pedagogical decisions. These factors influenced both the structure and use of presumptive reasoning in the arguments. The results have implications for classroom practice, teacher education, and further research.

Reversing the Downward Spiral of Science Instruction in K-2 Classrooms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sandholtz, Judith Haymore; Ringstaff, Cathy

2011-10-01

This study investigated the extent to which teacher professional development led to changes in science instruction in K-2 classrooms in rural school districts. The research specifically examined changes in (a) teachers' content knowledge in science; (b) teachers' self-efficacy related to teaching science; (c) classroom instructional time allotted to science; and (d) instructional strategies used in science. The study also investigated contextual factors contributing to or hindering changes in science instruction. Data sources included a teacher survey, a self-efficacy assessment, content knowledge tests, interviews, and classroom observations. After one year in the program, teachers showed increased content knowledge and self-efficacy in teaching science; they spent more instructional time on science and began using different instructional strategies. Key contextual factors included curricular demands, resources, administrative support, and support from other teachers.

Teacher and Student Perceptions on High School Science Flipped Classrooms: Educational Breakthrough or Media Hype?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hunley, Rebecca C.

For years educators have struggled to ensure students meet the rigors of state mandated tests. Challenges that often impede student success are student absences, school closings due to weather, and remediation for students who need additional help while advanced students can move ahead. Many educators, especially secondary math and science teachers, have responded to these issues by implementing a teaching strategy called the flipped classroom where students view lectures, power points, or podcasts outside of school and class time shifts to allow opportunities for collaborative learning. The purpose of this research was to evaluate teacher and student perceptions of high school flipped science classrooms. A qualitative phenomenological study was conducted to observe 3 high school science teachers from Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee selected through purposeful sampling who have used the flipped classroom method for a minimum of 2 years. Analysis of data from an online survey, direct observation, teacher interviews, and student focus groups helped to identify challenges and benefits of this teaching and learning strategy. Findings indicated that teachers find the flipped classroom beneficial to build student relationships but requires a significant amount of time to develop. Mixed student reactions revealed benefits of a flipped classroom as a successful learning tool for current and future endeavors for college or career preparation.

The Relationship Between Reformed Teaching and Students' Creativity in a Chinese Middle School

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Chenglin

Current education reform in both the United States and China promotes a reformed inquiry-based approach based on the constructivist learning theory. This study contributes to the research literature by exploring the relationship between reformed science teaching and students' creativity. Chinese education is often criticized for a lack of creativity by some news media (Stack, 2011). This study was designed to explore the creativity of students and the extent to which inquiry instruction is used in the science classroom. The study used a convenience sample of two classes from a middle school located in Wuhu city, Anhui province, China. A total of 120 students and 3 science teachers participated. A mixed-methods research approach was adopted for integrated explanation. Student surveys, the Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (TTCT), Verbal, Reformed Teaching Observation Protocol (RTOP), and semi-structured interview were utilized as research tools for collecting quantitative and qualitative data. The findings indicate that there was a positive relationship between reformed teaching and students' creativity (F (2, 117) = 19.760, p<.001). Classroom observation generally indicated that the participating teachers were skillful at promoting conceptual understanding and provoking high-level thinking. However, evidence of student-centered instruction was less apparent. The semi-structured interviews with participating teachers showed a positive attitude toward inquiry-based teaching but also revealed several challenges. The findings from the Verbal TTCT and classroom observation provided evidence of Chinese students' creativity. Directions for future research are provided.

Teacher and student perspectives on motivation within the high school science classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pickens, Melanie Turnure

The purpose of this study was to investigate teacher and student perspectives on the motivation of high school science students and to explore specific motivational strategies used by teachers as they attempt to enhance student motivation. Four science teachers took part in an initial audio-taped interview, classroom observations with debriefing conversations, and a final audio-taped interview to discuss findings and allow member checking for data triangulation and interpretation. Participating teachers also took part in a final focus group interview. Student participants from each teacher's class were given a Likert style anonymous survey on their views about motivation and learning, motivation in science class, and specific motivational strategies that emerged in their current science class. This study focused on effective teaching strategies for motivation commonly used by the four teachers and on specific teaching strategies used by two of these four teachers in different tracks of science classes. The intent was to determine not only what strategies worked well for all types of science classes, but also what specific motivational approaches were being used in high and low tracked science classes and the similarities and differences between them. This approach provided insight into the differences in motivating tracked students, with the hope that other educators in specific tracks might use such pedagogies to improve motivation in their own science classrooms. Results from this study showed that science teachers effectively motivate their students in the following ways: Questioning students to engage them in the lesson, exhibiting enthusiasm in lesson presentations, promoting a non-threatening environment, incorporating hands-on activities to help learn the lesson concepts, using a variety of activities, believing that students can achieve, and building caring relationships in the classroom. Specific to the higher tracked classroom, effective motivational strategies included: Use of teacher enthusiasm, promoting a non-threatening class atmosphere, and connecting the adolescent world to science. In the lower tracked classroom, specific effective strategies were: Encouraging student-student dialogue, making lessons relevant using practical applications, building student self-confidence, and using hands-on inquiry activities. Teachers who incorporate such strategies into their classrooms regardless of the track will likely increase motivation and also enhance learning for all students.

Science teaching self-efficacy in a primary school: A case study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Laat, Jenny; Watters, James J.

1995-12-01

Bandura's theory of self-efficacy predicts that teachers with high, self-efficacy should persist longer, provide a greater academic focus in child-centred classrooms and exhibit different types of feedback than teachers who have lower self-efficacy. This paper reports on the science teaching self-efficacy in a group of teachers at a state primary school. The research was conducted in two stages using firstly the Science Teaching Efficacy Beliefs Instrument (STEBI-A) to identify cases, and secondly, a semistructured interview coupled with classroom observations. Thirty seven teaching staff were surveyed with the STEBI-A instrument. The five highest and five lowest scoring teachers on the personal science teaching self-efficacy subscale of the STEBI-A were interviewed. The analysis of interviews and observations indicated that teachers with high personal science teaching self-efficacy have had a long interest in science and a relatively strong background of formal science studies with opportunities for exploring out of school activities. Although they may have experienced negative science experiences in their own schooling other ameliorating factors existed which maintained their interest. Their instructional strategies in science lessons were more child-centred than those reported by teachers with lower personal science teaching self-efficacy. The implications of the results for the inservice training of teachers are discussed.

Brief antecedent assessment and treatment of tics in the general education classroom: a preliminary investigation.

PubMed

Watson, T Steuart; Dufrene, Brad; Weaver, Adam; Butler, Tonya; Meeks, Caroline

2005-11-01

The purpose of this study was to determine if specific classroom antecedents were associated with motor and vocal tics in two males diagnosed with Tourette's syndrome. A functional assessment consisting of teacher and student interviews, direct observations, brief functional analysis, and confirmatory naturalistic observations indicated that specific antecedents could be identified for each participant. Simplified habit reversal was then implemented only under the antecedent condition that resulted in the highest rate of tics. The rate of tics decreased under the specific antecedent condition as well as at other times as validated by behavioral observations conducted at random times. The discussion focuses on the utility of conducting such assessments, the methodological and applied limitations of the current study, and avenues for further research.

The use of imagery by intelligent and by creative schoolchildren.

PubMed

Shaw, G A

1985-04-01

Two studies focusing on differences in thinking strategies between intellectually gifted and creative children were undertaken. In the first study (N = 29), ethnographic techniques of observation along with testing and problem-solving interviews were used in a regular classroom. Three subjects (one high IQ and high creativity, one high IQ and low creativity, and one low IQ and high creativity) were identified for intensive observation. In the second study, testing procedures and problem-solving interviews were completed with 30 children who were placed in a gifted program within an urban school system. Both studies produced evidence supporting the link between imaging abilities and creative thinking.

The Translation of Teachers' Understanding of Gifted Students Into Instructional Strategies for Teaching Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, Soonhye; Steve Oliver, J.

2009-08-01

This study examined how instructional challenges presented by gifted students shaped teachers’ instructional strategies. This study is a qualitative research grounded in a social constructivist framework. The participants were three high school science teachers who were teaching identified gifted students in both heterogeneously- and homogeneously-grouped classrooms. Major data sources are classroom observations and interviews. Data analysis indicated that these science teachers developed content-specific teaching strategies based on their understanding of gifted students, including: (a) instructional differentiation, e.g., thematic units, (b) variety in instructional mode and/or students’ products, (c) student grouping strategies and peer tutoring, (d) individualized support, (e) strategies to manage challenging questions, (f) strategies to deal with the perfectionism, and (g) psychologically safe classroom environments.

Master and novice secondary science teachers' understandings and use of the learning cycle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reap, Melanie Ann

2000-09-01

The learning cycle paradigm had been used in science classrooms for nearly four decades. This investigation seeks to reveal how the 1earning cycle, as originally designed, is currently understood and implemented by teachers in authentic classroom settings. The specific purposes of this study were: (1) to describe teachers who use the learning cycle and compare their understandings and perceptions of the learning cycle procedure in instruction; (2) to elicit novice and master teacher perspectives on their instruction and determine their perception of the process by which learning cycles are implemented in the science classroom; (3) to describe the context of science instruction in the novice and master teacher's classroom to ascertain how the teacher facilitates implementation of the learning cycle paradigm in their authentic classroom setting. The study used a learning cycle survey, interviews and classroom observations using the Learning Cycle Teacher Behavior Instruments and the Verbal Interaction Category System to explore these features of learning cycle instruction. The learning cycle survey was administered to a sample of teachers who use the learning cycle, including master and novice learning cycle teachers. One master and one novice learning cycle teacher were selected from this sample for further study. Analysis of the surveys showed no significant differences in master and novice teacher understandings of the learning cycle as assessed by the instrument. However, interviews and observations of the selected master and novice learning cycle teachers showed several differences in how the paradigm is understood and implemented in the classroom. The master learning cycle teacher showed a more developed teaching philosophy and had more engaged, extensive interactions with students. The novice learning cycle teacher held a more naive teaching philosophy and had fewer, less developed interactions with students. The most significant difference was seen in the use of questioning and discussion. The master teacher used diverse questioning techniques and guided students in discussion of their findings while the novice teachers used more rote response questions and controlled the discussion. The findings of this study have implications for science teacher education, especially in the preparation of teachers in science methods courses and student teaching, and in in-service education programs.

A Motivational Interviewing Intervention for the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reich, Catherine M.; Howard Sharp, Katianne M.; Berman, Jeffrey S.

2015-01-01

Despite attempts to engage students, undergraduate instructors are often challenged by low motivation among students to study outside of the classroom. The current study adapted motivational interviewing, which is often used with therapy clients ambivalent to change, to target college student motivation to study for exams. Findings indicated…

Distancing Students from Nature: Science Camp and the Representation of the Human-Nature Relationship

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Terrill, Laura Anne

2015-01-01

This study investigated the curricular representations of the environment and the human-environment relationship at one residential school sponsored science camp. Data gathered included field notes from observational time at the camp, interviews with staff and classroom teachers, and documents from the site's website, guides, manuals, and…

Business Meeting Training on Its Head: Inverted and Embedded Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Van Praet, Ellen

2016-01-01

This article explores the value of using embedding to extend the notion of first exposure learning in flipped classroom practices. It describes a preclass assignment for a meeting and negotiation skills course, in which students are instructed to observe an authentic business meeting, interview participants of the meeting, photograph the…

Situated Teacher Quality: A Case Study of an Experienced Elementary School Teacher

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kolman, Joni S.

2017-01-01

This case study examines how an experienced teacher's practice and pedagogy differs across two high-accountability urban charter schools in the United States of America (USA). Drawing on semi-structured interviews and participant observations, the findings describe variances in Rebecca's planning, use of classroom time, and curriculum flexibility,…

Pedagogical Content Knowledge: A Case Study of ESL Teacher Educator

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liu, Siping

2013-01-01

This single-case study focuses on the pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) of a university faculty member teaching Second Language Acquisition to elementary teacher candidates. The research questions address the pattern and development of PCK for ESL teaching. Based on data from classroom observation, interviews and document review, the study finds…

Music Education in the Republic of Indonesia: A Model of Cultural Pluralism.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goolsby, Thomas W.

Based on formal and informal observations of classrooms at all levels of government and private Islamic schools, as well as formal and informal interviews with students, teachers, administrators, and parents, this paper was the result of experiences as an Fulbright-Hays lecturer in Indonesia. The Indonesian Department of Education and Culture…

The Development and Study of Hmong Literacy: Ensuring the Future and Preserving the Past.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kang, Hee-Won; And Others

A study of Hmong adult immigrants in a Hmong literacy class investigated four aspects of their learning behaviors: specific behaviors manifested in the literacy classroom; overt learning strategies used for literacy learning; major motivations; and specific uses for Hmong literacy skills. Data were gathered through observation, interviews,…

Blogging and Tweens: Communication Portal to Reading Selection and Engagement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sharber, Shelli K.

2012-01-01

The ethnographic study utilized the research techniques of observations, content analysis, and semi-structured interviews with tween participants (i.e., 9- through 13-year-old youth) during an 8-week literary blog project. Twenty-six participants created individual blog pages within a member-only classroom blog site that allowed for online…

Using Pupil Perspective in the Primary Classroom: An Exploration of Some of the Potential Issues

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fisher, Helen

2014-01-01

This article uses the author's original study of over hundred Year six children's perspectives of literacy and the wider curriculum, in English schools, to explore the potential challenges of exploring "pupil voice". Using collective case studies, with descriptive and time-sampled observations, and semi-structured interviews, across an…

Washback of English National Examination in the Indonesian Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Furaidah; Saukah, Ali; Widiati, Utami

2015-01-01

This study examines how teachers teach English to prepare students for high-stakes English national examination in the Indonesian context. Data were collected from two high-achieving and three low-achieving schools with eleven teachers as the subjects of in-depth interviews and non-participatory classroom observations. The findings reveal that…

Characteristics of Family and Classroom Control in an Urban Appalachian Neighborhood.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Borman, Kathryn M.; And Others

Data collected from observations of a kindergarten class, and parent interviews with second and third generation Appalachian families living in an inner city working class neighborhood, when contrasted with Melvin Kohn's work on values, illuminate the discontinuity between the language of social control in the home and at school. Appalachian…

Measuring the Difficult to Measure: Teaching and Learning with an iPad

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hargis, Jace; Cavanaugh, Cathy; Kamali, Tayeb; Soto, Melissa

2013-01-01

This study applies a comprehensive set of measures to document teaching practice and instructor responses when integrating new mobile technology devices in the classroom. The triangulated measures include a rubric for observing teaching with mobile learning devices in higher education, an interview protocol for capturing faculty levels of mobile…

"At a School Like This" Implementing Policy in a Kindergarten Reading Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harris, Pauline

2010-01-01

This paper examines influences in a teacher's working context on policy implementation in a Kindergarten reading program. This exploration is based on a year's observations, interviews and artefact collection in the teacher's classroom; and is framed by Bernstein's notion of the pedagogic device (2000). Positioned between policy and the history of…

"Hay Que Seguir Luchando": Struggles that Shaped English Language Learning of Four Cuban Immigrant Women

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Butcher, John S.; Townsend, Jane S.

2011-01-01

Newly arrived from Cuba, Angelica, Dora, Marina, and Damaris attempted to negotiate new surroundings and immigrant identities, building a sense of home for themselves and their families. Data from qualitative interviews, classroom observations, and focus group conversations revealed hopes that by acquiring English language skills, they would…

An Audience for the Aliens

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bryer, Theo

2013-01-01

This account of the making and sharing of self-authored digital videos in a Year 5 classroom focuses on the way that the children appear to be influenced by their awareness of audience. Drawing on evidence of video observation, written and moving image texts produced by the children and semi-structured interviews with them, I examine the factors…

"We Understand Better Because We Have Been Mothers": Teaching, Maternalism, and Gender Equality in Bolivian Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reid, Julie A.; Miller, Amy Chasteen

2014-01-01

This article explores Bolivian schoolteachers' attitudes and practices surrounding gender in the context of a national educational reform law that mandated gender equity. Teacher interviews and primary school classroom observations indicate teachers' discourses and practices reflect a sometimes paradoxical blend of advocacy for gender equality and…

Black and White in School: Trust, Tension, or Tolerance?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schofield, Janet Ward

The study on which this book is based examined the development of social relationships among black and white students in a new, desegregated urban middle school. In the initial phase, information was gathered from classroom observation, interviews, and a wide variety of supplementary sources over a three-year period beginning with summer…

Exploring Simulator Use in the Preparation of Chemical Engineers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yerrick, Randy; Lund, Carl; Lee, Yonghee

2013-01-01

In this manuscript, we report the impact of students' usage of a simulator in the preparation of chemical engineers. This case study was conducted using content pretest and posttests, survey questionnaires, interviews, classroom observations, and an analysis of students' written response to design problems. Results showed the use of simulator was…

Implementing Curriculum-Based Learning Portfolio: A Case Study in Taiwan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chen, Shu-Chin Susan; Cheng, Yu-Pay

2011-01-01

The main purpose of this descriptive research is to examine and document the development of a curriculum-based learning portfolio model for children in a preschool for three-six-year-olds in Taiwan. Data collection methods adopted include classroom observation, in-depth interviews, questionnaires and documentation. Participants include a preschool…

Supports for Children with Disabilities in Regular Education Classrooms: An Account of Different Perspectives in Flanders

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mortier, Kathleen; Van Hove, Geert; De Schauwer, Elisabeth

2010-01-01

This paper presents the experiences and interpretations of children, parents, teachers and support persons concerning the implementation of supports in regular school environments in Flanders, Belgium. The data were gathered through observations, interviews and focus group meetings. Those multiple perspectives provide insights into the complexity…

The Composing Processes of Mature Adults.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crabbe, Katharyn

The study examined 41 students (24 male, 17 female) in a beginning writing course for adults. Data were collected by (1) taping four workshop sessions in which all students participated in small groups, (2) interviewing all the students, and (3) observing four students writing in the classroom. The adult writers composed in two models: the…

English Language Teachers on the Discursive Faultlines: Identities, Ideologies and Pedagogies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Menard-Warwick, Julia

2013-01-01

This book brings the voices of teachers into the fierce debates about language ideologies and cultural pedagogies in English language teaching. Through interviews and classroom observations in Chile and California, this study compares the controversies around English as a global language with the similar cultural tensions in programs for…

Complex Interactions of Factors Underlying Thai EFL Learners' Willingness to Communicate in English

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pattapong, Kamlaitip

2015-01-01

This paper explores factors contributing to the willingness to communicate (WTC) in English as a foreign language (L2) in a Thai university setting. The study uses multiple methods within a qualitative research approach. Data were collected through interviews, stimulated recall, and classroom observations. Relevant contextually-related variables…

Using Enrichment Clusters to Address the Needs of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Allen, Jennifer K.; Robbins, Margaret A.; Payne, Yolanda Denise; Brown, Katherine Backes

2016-01-01

Using data from teacher interviews, classroom observations, and a professional development workshop, this article explains how one component of the schoolwide enrichment model (SEM) has been implemented at a culturally diverse elementary school serving primarily Latina/o and African American students. Based on a broadened conception of giftedness,…

Dual Language Teachers' Use of Conventional, Environmental, and Personal Resources to Support Academic Language Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lucero, Audrey

2015-01-01

This article reports findings from a study that investigated the ways in which first-grade dual language teachers drew on various resources to instructionally support academic language development among Spanish-English emergent bilingual students. Classroom observations, semistructured interviews, and document collection were conducted over a…

Supporting Personalization for Academic and Social Learning in High Schools. Practitioner Brief

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Center on Scaling Up Effective Schools, 2013

2013-01-01

The National Center On Scaling Up Effective Schools spent the 2010-2011 school year observing classrooms and interviewing students, teachers, support staff, and school leadership teams across four high schools in South Florida to study the policies, programs, practices, and processes that made these schools effective in reaching all learners. From…

Supporting Secondary Readers: When Teachers Provide the "What," Not the "How"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ness, Molly K.

2008-01-01

The purpose of this study was to explore and understand the instructional strategies that middle and high school teachers used to support struggling readers. Data from 2,400 minutes of direct classroom observation and interviews of secondary content-area teachers revealed that explicit reading comprehension instruction was not a significant way in…

Little Steps at Improving Preschool Teachers Practices through Counseling Skills in Qatar

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Al-Thani, Aisha; Nasser, Ramzi

2012-01-01

The study focused on the effects of basic counseling skills program, such as listening, understanding, respecting, and empathizing, to elementary school teachers in Qatar. Through a three-hour intervention program, the authors used a self-reported questionnaire, interview questions and classroom observations to examine changes in how preschool…

Inside Urban Charter Schools: Promising Practices and Strategies in Five High-Performing Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Merseth, Katherine K.

2009-01-01

"Inside Urban Charter Schools" offers an unprecedentedly intimate glimpse into the world of charter schools by profiling five high-performing urban charter schools serving predominantly low-income, minority youth in Massachusetts. Interviews, focus groups, and classroom observations conducted over the course of two years flesh out rich…

Knowledge Acquisition at Work. IEE Brief Number 2.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scribner, Sylvia; Sachs, Patricia

An exploratory investigation attempted to determine how learning at work actually takes place and in what ways learning on the job differs from classroom learning. The study was based on extensive observations and interviews over a 5-year period at two manufacturing plants that implemented a computer-based system known as Manufacturing Resource…

Revenge of the Beta Boys: Opting out as an Exercise in Masculinity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walker, Alicia

2014-01-01

This study examines the factors influencing underachieving boys on a high-performing high school campus. Unlike the "laddishness" often seen in studies of underachievement among boys, the boys in this study were quiet, unobtrusive, and compliant within the classroom. Using qualitative interviews and observation conducted over a one-year…

Teaching Kindergartners Racial Diversity through Multicultural Literature: A Case Study in a Kindergarten Classroom in Korea

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kim, So Jung; Wee, Su-Jeong; Lee, Young Mi

2016-01-01

Research Findings: This qualitative case study examines Korean kindergartners' literary discussions about racial/cultural diversity during a whole-group read-aloud. Using multiple sources of data, including observations, open-ended interviews, and written materials and children's artifacts, this study found that (a) the children exhibited a biased…

Technology Adoption in Secondary Mathematics Teaching in Kenya: An Explanatory Mixed Methods Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kamau, Leonard Mwathi

2014-01-01

This study examined the factors related to technology adoption by secondary mathematics teachers in Nyandarua and Nairobi counties in the Republic of Kenya. Using a sequential explanatory mixed methods approach, I collected qualitative data from interviews and classroom observations of six teachers to better understand statistical results from the…

Pioneer Mentoring in Teacher Preparation: From the Voices of Women Religious.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Keating, Kevina; Traviss, Mary Peter

This book includes the observations of educational leaders and classroom teachers within religious institutions recognized as pioneers in implementing a teacher preparation model that has prepared thousands of Catholic school teachers nationwide. It is based on a study that interviewed 60 women religious belonging to 12 religious institutions that…

Teaching as a Social Practice: The Experiences of Two Moroccan Adult Literacy Tutors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Erguig, Reddard

2012-01-01

This article offers an ethnographic case study of two Adult Basic Education (ABE) teachers' characteristics and their literacy instruction. It draws on the New Literacy Studies tradition and used ethnographic tools (in-depth interviews, classroom observation and the think-aloud protocol) to explore the characteristics of two ABE teachers and…

A Comparison of the Pedagogical Practices of Mathematics Education for Young Children in England and South Korea

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Siraj-Blatchford, Iram; Nah, Kwi-Ok

2014-01-01

The pedagogical practices of mathematics education for young children in English and Korean pre-schools were compared through analyses of interviews with practitioners, observations of classroom activities and an examination of documents related to the planning and implementation of mathematics education. Practitioners in both countries used…

Resisting Punitive School Discipline: Perspectives and Practices of Exemplary Urban Elementary Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hambacher, Elyse

2018-01-01

Drawing on the literature related to classroom management, and culturally relevant critical teacher care, and effective teaching for students of color, this paper uses interview and observation data to explore the perspectives and practices of two exemplary fifth-grade teachers who refuse to rely on punitive discipline with their students of…

"Constantly in the Making": Pedagogical Characteristics of Education for Sustainability in Postsecondary Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Belue Buckley, Jessica

2015-01-01

Using a grounded theory methodology with observation of 67 courses and interviews with 42 individuals, including faculty, staff, and students, the author highlights three pedagogical characteristics of postsecondary educators who engage in education for sustainability (EfS). Educators teach beyond content, incorporate a values orientation, and use…

A Study of University Teachers' Enactment of Curriculum Reform in China

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yu, Aiqin

2015-01-01

This article documents an ongoing study of educational policy enactment in a Chinese university. Drawing upon data collected through document analysis, semi-structured interviews and classroom observations, this paper argues that the enactment of China's systemic College English curriculum reform is not a matter of simple implementation but the…

Challenges to Early Childhood Education in Rural China: Lessons from the Hebei Province

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hu, Bi Ying; Roberts, Sherron Killingsworth; Leng Ieong, Sylvia Sao; Guo, Haiying

2016-01-01

This research study examined the challenges faced by early childhood education (ECE) in rural China based on a qualitative study of 217 kindergarten classrooms in a large agricultural, rural province. This study utilised onsite teacher surveys, interviews, and observational field notes. This investigation's findings revealed important information…

Science Education in Tanzania: Challenges and Policy Responses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Semali, Ladislaus M.; Mehta, Khanjan

2012-01-01

Students in rural and urban areas in Tanzania, and elsewhere in Africa, continue to have limited or lack access to culturally and employment-relevant science education. The current case study, a 2007-2009 examination of barriers to the reform movement of science education in Tanzania, uses data from interviews, classroom observations, document…

"Restorying" Science Education Based on Local Spiritual and Cultural Values: The Case of Ethiopia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Faris, Solomon Belay

2014-01-01

Research demonstrates how enjoyable and meaningful learning is for children when there is smooth transition between home and classroom. This autoethnographic research used in-depth interviews and observations to examine the Ethiopian people's spiritual centered lifestyle at home and whether this style is carried into science classes in the…

Reading Habits of College Students in the United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Huang, SuHua; Capps, Matthew; Blacklock, Jeff; Garza, Mary

2014-01-01

This study employed a convergent mixed-method research design to investigate reading habits of American college students. A total of 1,265 (466 male and 799 female) college students voluntarily participated in the study by completing a self-reported survey. Twelve students participated in semi-structured interviews and classroom observations.…

The Road Not Taken: Two African-American Girls' Experiences with School Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lim, Jae Hoon

2008-01-01

This article is a cross-case study exploring two young African-American adolescent girls' experiences with school mathematics and the impact of the socio-cultural context upon their motivation and mathematical identity. Based on repeated in-depth interviews and ethnographic observation of their mathematics classroom, the researcher portrays…

Teaching Trump: A Case Study of Two Teachers and the Election of 2016

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anderson, Derek L.; Zyhowski, Joni

2018-01-01

This case study investigated how two 8th-grade teachers planned for, delivered, and reflected on their teaching of the 2016 Presidential Election. Data sources included classroom observations, teacher interviews, and lesson plans. Despite integrating student-centered lessons about the election with social and political events in US History from…

Science and Social Studies Teachers' Beliefs and Practices about Teaching Controversial Issues: Certain Comparisons

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kus, Zafer

2015-01-01

The current study aims to investigate social studies and science teachers' attitudes and classroom practices associated with controversial issues. The study is a qualitative research based on data collected through interviews and observation. Social studies and Science teachers participated in the current study which was conducted in Kirsehir, a…

"This Education is Not for Our Students": Responses of Mexican Educators to Globalising Education Policies and Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Amanti, Cathy

2017-01-01

This article explores the relationship between travelling education policies and a 2008 Mexican high-school reform from the perspective of Mexican educators. Using an ethnographic approach, consisting of interviews, classroom and community observations, and document analysis, study findings show that the educators participating in this study…

Caring in a Small Urban High School: A Complicated Success

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rivera-McCutchen, Rosa L.

2012-01-01

This article focuses on a small urban high school that developed a culture devoted to caring for their historically underserved students. Interviews with school founders, teachers, and alumni, as well as observations of classrooms and professional activities, revealed the high school attended to the affective needs of their students, which…

Inclusive Education in an International School: A Case Study from Hong Kong

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chan, Twiggy; Yuen, Mantak

2015-01-01

This case study provides an overview of current policy, practices and problems concerning inclusion in one international secondary school in Hong Kong. A total of 13 interviews were conducted with the school management team, teachers, students and parents, supplemented by 12 classroom observations and two "student-shadowing" exercises.…

The Ideal "Native Speaker" Teacher: Negotiating Authenticity and Legitimacy in the Language Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Creese, Angela; Blackledge, Adrian; Takhi, Jaspreet Kaur

2014-01-01

This article presents a linguistic ethnographic study of a Panjabi complementary school in Birmingham, UK. Researchers observed classes for one academic year, writing field notes, conducting interviews, and making digital audio recordings of linguistic interactions. Sets of beliefs about the production and deployment of certain linguistic signs…

From Swan to Ugly Duckling? Mentoring Dynamics and Preservice Teachers' Readiness to Teach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Izadinia, Mahsa

2017-01-01

This study focuses on two preservice teachers who experienced significantly different mentoring relationships in their two placements during a one-year teaching degree in a university in Western Australia. Data were collected through three rounds of semi-structured interviews, reflective journals and classroom observations. The findings indicated…

Increasing Urban Students' Engagement with School: Toward the Expeditionary Learning Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ikpeze, Chinwe

2013-01-01

This paper documents the findings of a case study of one K-10 urban expeditionary learning (EL) school. Drawing on theoretical perspectives consistent with the sociocultural theory, data were collected from a variety of sources that included a survey, interviews, field notes from classroom observations and other school activities. Thematic…

Venezuela--The Teaching of Reading in Rural Schools.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ramirez, Rhoda L.

Direct interviews with 17 teachers and observation in 31 rural and urban Venezuelan classrooms (pre-school through grade 6 in nine schools) across 3 states revealed serious reading difficulties among Venezuelan students. Small rooms and multi-grade class situations were common and school supplies and equipment were scarce. Even more scarce were…

Understanding elementary teacher motivations for science fieldtrips

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kisiel, James

2005-11-01

This investigation sought to identify the motivations that comprise teachers' agendas when leading student fieldtrips to science museums or similar sites. A survey distributed to upper elementary teachers resulted in a variety of open-ended responses that were analyzed and coded to identify recurring themes. In addition, ten teachers planning to lead a school trip to a natural history museum were interviewed and observed. Interview and observation data were used to triangulate findings and refine descriptions of actual practice. Eight fieldtrip motivations were identified including to connect with the classroom curriculum, to provide a general learning experience, to encourage lifelong learning, to enhance interest and motivation, to provide exposure to new experiences, to provide a change in setting or routine, for enjoyment, and to meet school expectations. Results indicated that connecting to the classroom curriculum was an important consideration, although teachers had different interpretations of what this meant. Further examination of the teachers' agendas suggested the influence of different contexts, including that of the school and the museum site. These findings lead to suggestions for facilitating school visits to informal settings by considering the teachers' fieldtrip perspectives and agendas.

Examining Teacher Framing, Student Reasoning, and Student Agency in School-Based Citizen Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harris, Emily Mae

This dissertation presents three interrelated studies examining opportunities for student learning through contributory citizen science (CS), where students collect and contribute data to help generate new scientific knowledge. I draw on sociocultural perspectives of learning to analyze three cases where teachers integrated CS into school science, one third grade, one fourth grade, and one high school Marine Biology classroom. Chapter 2 is a conceptual investigation of the opportunities for students to engage in scientific reasoning practices during CS data collection activities. Drawing on science education literature and vignettes from case studies, I argue that the teacher plays an important role in mediating opportunities for students to engage in investigative, explanatory, and argumentative practices of science through CS. Chapter 3 focuses on teacher framing of CS, how teachers perceive what is going on (Goffman, 1974) and how they communicate that to students as they launch CS tasks. Through analysis of videos and interviews of two upper elementary school teachers, I found that teachers frame CS for different purposes. These framings were influenced by teachers' goals, orientations towards science and CS, planning for instruction, and prior knowledge and experience. Chapter 4 examines how students demonstrate agency with environmental science as they explore their personal interests across their third grade classroom, school garden, and science lab contexts, through the lens of social practice theory (Holland, Lachicotte, Skinner, & Cain, 1998). Through analysis of classroom observations, student interviews, teacher interviews and important moments for three focal students, I found that student agency was enabled and constrained by the different cultures of the classroom, garden, and science lab. Despite affordances of the garden and science lab, the teachers' epistemic authority in the classroom permeated all three contexts, constraining student agency. In Chapter 5, the conclusion, I summarize and synthesize findings from the previous three chapters, outlining three value-added affordances of CS for student learning: repeated data collection, diverse stakeholders and student contributions, and the uncertainty of field work. I also suggest three factors that can mediate these opportunities for learning: teacher framing, the culture of the classroom learning environment, and access to and use of CS project resources. These findings have important implications for design and implementation of CS in classrooms by citizen science practitioners and classroom teachers.

Improving math and science education in charter secondary schools through the use of technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ojose, Bobby

This study was conducted to examine the promising practices of using technology in teaching math and science in charter schools in California. The study was conducted under the auspices of the Center for Educational Governance (CEG) which hopes to compile the promising practices into an Internet-based compendium to be replicated by others. The research employed an in-depth qualitative case study method. It was conducted in two secondary schools in different school districts in the state of California over a two-month period. The main participants were principals, lead teachers, teachers, and support staff. Interviews, observations, and archival documents were the main data collection tools. Face to face interviews were conducted with the principals, lead teachers of technology, teachers, and a support staff (Network Administrator). Technology lab and professional development activities were observed. Interviews were tape-recorded and transcribed. The study found that one school (MSA) has the promising practice of using technology to enhance the subject matter knowledge of students by using computers to further explore concepts already learned in the regular classroom. The other school (CART) has the promising practice of applying technology to real life situations as a teaching pedagogy. The result of these practices is the positive outcomes in the following areas: Increased student achievement in standardized teat scores, increased motivation, growth in mean GPA, less behavior problems from students, and improved school attendance by students. The implications for policy and practice include: Teachers having the knowledge of the benefits of constructive teaching in the classroom; principals understanding that professional development activities for technology integration will vary in complexities and depends on needs of teachers; policy makers identifying needs and establishing goals; and researchers conducting more qualitative studies to gather evidence to demonstrate the progression of learning in the technology classroom.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kwok, A.G.

This paper examines the comfort criteria of ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 55-1992 for their applicability in tropical classrooms. A field study conducted in Hawaii used a variety of methods to collect the data: survey questionnaires, physical measurements, interviews, and behavioral observations. A total of 3,544 students and teachers completed questionnaires in 29 naturally ventilated and air-conditioned classrooms in six schools during two seasons. The majority of classrooms failed to meet the physical specifications of the Standard 55 comfort zone. Thermal neutrality, preference, and acceptability results are compared with other field studies and the Standard 55 criteria. Acceptability votes by occupants of bothmore » naturally ventilated and air-conditioned classrooms exceeded the standard`s 80% acceptability criteria, regardless of whether physical conditions were in or out of the comfort zone. Responses from these two school populations suggest not only a basis for separate comfort standards but energy conservation opportunities through raising thermostat set points.« less

Epistemological Syncretism in a Biology Classroom: A Case Study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bennett, William D.; Park, Soonhye

2011-02-01

In teaching science, the beliefs of teachers may come into conflict and inhibit the implementation of reformed teaching practice. An experienced biology teacher, Mr. Hobbs, was found to have two different sets of epistemological beliefs while his classroom practice was predominantly teacher-centered. A case study was then performed in order to investigate the underlying issues that contributed to his classroom practice. Data sources included preliminary and follow-up interviews and classroom observations. Data analysis indicated that factors that prevented the epistemological conflict from reaching a resolution included Mr. Hobbs' beliefs about learning, contextual teaching factors, personal experiences as a student, and views of the nature of science. The findings from this case indicate that science teachers possess complex belief systems that are not immediately obvious to either the teacher or science teacher educators, and science teacher educators need to address teacher beliefs when they encourage teachers to implement reformed teaching practices.

The function of questions in Omani fourth grade inquiry-based science classrooms: A sociocultural perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Al-Shaibani, Madiha Ahmed

2005-11-01

Studies indicate that science education reforms are globally converging. Many countries are adopting the globally advocated science education reforms for the purpose of obtaining the competitive edge in science education and technology that are viewed as the driving forces of modern economies. Globally, science education reforms are emphasizing paradigm shifts in which constructivist instructional are foregrounded. Many science education curricular documents advocate teaching science through engaging students in scientific inquiry. As a result, science classrooms are becoming more student-centered where students are typically actively engaged in inquiry learning. Even though inquiry instruction has become the common approach in teaching science, the actual implementation of inquiry in classrooms indicates that there is a big gap between the intended inquiry advocated in curricula documents and the actual practices in classroom settings. One of the main features of inquiry instruction is student questions. Authentic student questions are essential for the initiating and main scientific inquiry. However, studies have also illustrated the rarity of student questions in classrooms. This dearth in student questions has been attributed to the discursive practices in classrooms. Classrooms that implement the traditional IRE discourse structure tend to have less student questions. On the other hand, reflective questioning is considered a more appropriate classroom discourse structure because it intentionally invites student questions and engages students in classroom discussions. This qualitative study addresses the issue of questioning in fourth grade inquiry-based science classrooms of the Omani Basic Education system. Methods employed in this study included: participant observation, individual interviews, focus group interviews and the collection of artifacts. Findings of this study illustrated the rarity of student questions in the classrooms. However this investigation also revealed the connection between teacher beliefs and implementation of reforms. Teachers whose beliefs were aligned with reforms came closer to implementing reform initiatives as opposed to teachers whose beliefs were not aligned with reform initiatives. The findings of this study were inconclusive when it came to linking teachers' questioning practices to teachers' understanding of inquiry methods.

Views of Classroom Teachers Concerning Students with Reading Difficulties

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kayabasi, Zehra Esra Ketenoglu

2017-01-01

This study aimed to try to understand the views and attitudes of classroom teachers concerning students with reading difficulties. Data was collected using the semi-structured interview technique, which is among the qualitative data collection techniques. The researcher prepared a semi-structured interview with 5 questions to be addressed to…

Chinese Award-Winning Tutors' Perceptions and Practices of Classroom-Based Assessment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhou, Jiming; Deneen, Christopher Charles

2016-01-01

This study examines Chinese tertiary award-winning tutors' perceptions and reported practices of classroom-based assessment. Seventeen tutors in the final stage of a national university teaching contest were individually interviewed. An interview framework was developed using three process dimensions of assessment for learning (AfL). A sequential…

From Tourists to Citizens in the Classroom: An Interview with H. Jerome Freiberg.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sudzina, Mary R.

1997-01-01

Interview with H. Jerome Freiberg discusses the Consistency Management and Cooperative Discipline program, which encourages students to become "citizens" of their classroom and take responsibility for its academic and social environment. Recommends ways to improve the environment in urban schools and describes Freiberg's work with…

Teaching habitat and animal classification to fourth graders using an engineering-design model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marulcu, Ismail

2014-05-01

Background: The motivation for this work is built upon the premise that there is a need for research-based materials for design-based science instruction. In this paper, a small portion of our work investigating the impact of a LEGOTM engineering unit on fourth grade students' preconceptions and understanding of animals is presented. Purpose: The driving questions for our work are: (1) What is the impact of an engineering-design-based curricular module on students' understanding of habitat and animal classification? (2) What are students' misconceptions regarding animal classification and habitat? Sample: The study was conducted in an inner-city K-8 school in the northeastern region of the United States. There were two fourth grade classrooms in the school. The first classroom included seven girls and nine boys, whereas the other classroom included eight girls and eight boys. All fourth grade students participated in the study. Design and methods: In answering the research questions mixed-method approaches are used. Data collection methods included pre- and post-tests, pre- and post-interviews, student journals, and classroom observations. Identical pre- and post-tests were administered to measure students' understanding of animals. They included four multiple-choice and six open-ended questions. Identical pre- and post-interviews were administered to explore students' in-depth understanding of animals. Results: Our results show that students significantly increased their performance after instruction on both the multiple-choice questions (t = -3.586, p = .001) and the open-ended questions (t = -5.04, p = .000). They performed better on the post interviews as well. Also, it is found that design-based instruction helped students comprehend core concepts of a life science subject, animals. Conclusions: Based on these results, the main argument of the study is that engineering design is a useful framework for teaching not only physical science-related subjects, but also life science subjects in elementary science classrooms.

Beliefs about Using Technology in the Mathematics Classroom: Interviews with Pre-Service Elementary Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lin, Cheng-Yao

2008-01-01

This study explored the efficacy of web-based workshops in topics in elementary school mathematics in fostering teachers' confidence and competence in using instructional technology, and thereby promoting more positive attitudes toward using computers and Internet resources in the mathematics classroom. It consisted of in-depth interviews of…

Using Brief Teacher Interviews to Assess the Extent of Inquiry in Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oppong-Nuako, Juliet; Shore, Bruce M.; Saunders-Stewart, Katie S.; Gyles, Petra D. T.

2015-01-01

Inquiry-based instruction is common to nearly every model of gifted education. Six teachers of 14 secondary classes were briefly interviewed about their teaching and learning methods, use of inquiry-based strategies, classroom descriptions, a typical day, student expectations, and inquiry-instruction outcomes. A criterion-referenced checklist of…

Seventh-Day Adventist Teachers' Perceptions of Inclusion Classrooms and Identification of Challenges to Their Implementation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sargeant, Marcel A. A.; Berkner, Donna

2015-01-01

This qualitative study investigated the perceptions and challenges of Seventh-day Adventist teachers towards inclusion classrooms in the United States. For this study, 17 participants were interviewed using two 12-item interview protocols. The analysis of the teachers' responses revealed five key perceptions. First, teachers have positive…

Teachers' Experiences Providing One-on-One Instruction to Struggling Readers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liebfreund, Meghan D.; Amendum, Steven J.

2017-01-01

This study examined the experiences of 12 kindergarten, first-, and second-grade classroom teachers who provided one-on-one intervention instruction for struggling readers within the general classroom context. Teachers were interviewed at the end of the project. Interview statements clustered into four themes: Managing One-on-One Intervention,…

Structured Interviews on Children's Conceptions of Computers. Technical Report No. 19.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mawby, Ronald; And Others

The terms and concepts children used to explain their beliefs about computers before and after classroom exposure to microcomputers were studied to identify misconceptions about computers that could interfere with computer-based learning. Children in each of two classrooms at the Bank Street School for Children were interviewed individually on…

Investigating Secondary Science Teachers' Beliefs about Multiculturalism and Its Implementation in the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Petty, Lori L.; Narayan, Ratna

2012-01-01

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore secondary science teachers' beliefs about multiculturalism and its implementation in their classrooms. Participants included nine secondary science teachers, with experience ranging from 1 to 15 years of teaching. Data were collected through interviews, using a semi-structured interview protocol…

Similarity and difference: Student cooperation in Taiwanese and Australian science classrooms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wallace, John; Chou, Ching-Yang

2001-11-01

In this study, we examine the way in which students cooperate in Taiwanese and Australian science classrooms. We adopt the position that student cooperation is best understood by examining the patterns of variation within and between countries rather than trying to describe similarities and differences in essential terms. A critical analysis of large-scale learning environment questionnaire data combined with in-depth interview and observational data leads to several findings about the nature of student cooperation in the two countries. We conclude that students from Taiwan and Australia have a range of understandings and interpretations about what it means to cooperate in science classrooms. There are complex connections between cooperative behavior, student academic ability, sex, and nationality, which are best understood in socio-cultural terms.

We Look More, Listen More, Notice More: Impact of Sustained Professional Development on Head Start Teachers' Inquiry-Based and Culturally-Relevant Science Teaching Practices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roehrig, Gillian H.; Dubosarsky, Mia; Mason, Annie; Carlson, Stephan; Murphy, Barbara

2011-10-01

Despite many scholars' recommendations, science is often avoided during early childhood education. Among the reasons provided by early childhood teachers for the exclusion of science from their daily routines included science anxiety, low self-efficacy with respect to teaching science, lack of experience participating in science activities as students, or the notion that literacy and language are more important during the early years. In minority populations the problem is even greater due to identification of science with the `culture of. This article presents results from Ah Neen Dush, a sustained and transformative professional development program for Head Start teachers on an American Indian Reservation. The goal of the program is to support early childhood teachers in developing inquiry-based and culturally-relevant teaching practices. Through analysis of teachers' classroom practices, surveys and interviews, we explore changes in teachers' attitudes toward science and inquiry-based practices. Classroom observations were conducted using CLASS (Classroom assessment Scoring System), a tool used to evaluate the quality of classroom interactions. After 1 year of professional development teachers' attitudes were found to improve and after 2 years teachers classroom practices were more inquiry-based with statistically significant increases in CLASS observation scores.

Science teacher orientations and PCK across science topics in grade 9 earth science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Campbell, Todd; Melville, Wayne; Goodwin, Dawne

2017-07-01

While the literature is replete with studies examining teacher knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), few studies have investigated how science teacher orientations (STOs) shape classroom instruction. Therefore, this research explores the interplay between a STOs and the topic specificity of PCK across two science topics within a grade 9 earth science course. Through interviews and observations of one teacher's classroom across two sequentially taught, this research contests the notion that teachers hold a single way of conceptualising science teaching and learning. In this, we consider if multiple ontologies can provide potential explanatory power for characterising instructional enactments. In earlier work with the teacher in this study, using generic interview prompts and general discussions about science teaching and learning, we accepted the existence of a unitary STO and its promise of consistent reformed instruction in the classroom. However, upon close examination of instruction focused on different science topics, evidence was found to demonstrate the explanatory power of multiple ontologies for shaping characteristically different epistemological constructions across science topics. This research points to the need for care in generalising about teacher practice, as it reveals that a teacher's practice, and orientation, can vary, dependent on the context and science topics taught.

Scientist in the Classroom: The First Year Highlights of a Plasma Outreach Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nagy, A.; Danielson, C. A.; Lee, R. L.; Winter, P. S.; Valentine, J. R.

1999-11-01

The General Atomics education program ``Scientist in the Classroom'' uses scientists, engineers, and technicians to discuss plasma physics with students in the classroom. A program goal is to make science an enjoyable experience while showing students how plasma physics plays an important role in their world. A fusion overview is presented, including topics on energy and environment. Using hands-on equipment, students manipulate plasma discharges using magnetic fields and observe their spectral properties. Students also observe physical properties of liquid nitrogen, infrared waves, and radioactive particles. The benefit of this program, relative to facility tours, is that it optimizes cost and scheduling between the scientific staff and students. This program and its equipment are receiving accolades as an adjunct teaching option available to schools at no cost. This year we have presented to over 1000 students at 11 schools. Student exit interviews reflect strong positive comments regarding their hands-on learning experience and science appreciation.

A Tool for Measuring Active Learning in the Classroom

PubMed Central

Devlin, John W.; Kirwin, Jennifer L.; Qualters, Donna M.

2007-01-01

Objectives To develop a valid and reliable active-learning inventory tool for use in large classrooms and compare faculty perceptions of active-learning using the Active-Learning Inventory Tool. Methods The Active-Learning Inventory Tool was developed using published literature and validated by national experts in educational research. Reliability was established by trained faculty members who used the Active-Learning Inventory Tool to observe 9 pharmacy lectures. Instructors were then interviewed to elicit perceptions regarding active learning and asked to share their perceptions. Results Per lecture, 13 (range: 4-34) episodes of active learning encompassing 3 (range: 2-5) different types of active learning occurred over 2.2 minutes (0.6-16) per episode. Both interobserver (≥87%) and observer-instructor agreement (≥68%) were high for these outcomes. Conclusions The Active-Learning Inventory Tool is a valid and reliable tool to measure active learning in the classroom. Future studies are needed to determine the impact of the Active-Learning Inventory Tool on teaching and its usefulness in other disciplines. PMID:17998982

"She Can Bother Me, and that's because She Cares": What Inuit Students Say about Teaching and Their Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lewthwaite, Brian; McMillan, Barbara

2010-01-01

In this study, we have investigated, through interviews, conversations, questionnaires, and observations, perceptions of learning success of northern Qikiqtani (Baffin Island) of Nunavut Inuit middle years (grades 5-8) students and the classroom pedagogy influencing their success, in particular their learning in science. Most of the processes…

Exploring Teachers' Process of Change in Incorporating Problem Solving into the Mathematics Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rutherford, Vanessa

2012-01-01

This study explores how a problem-solving based professional learning community (PLC) affects the beliefs, knowledge, and instructional practices of two sixth-grade mathematics teachers. An interview and two observations were conducted prior to beginning the year-long PLC in order to gather information about the participants' beliefs,…

NCLB: Local Implementation and Impact in Southwest Washington State

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mabry, Linda; Margolis, Jason

2006-01-01

The research reported here is from the first two years of an ongoing and largely qualitative study to examine the impact of the No Child Left Behind federal education policy on educational practice and climate in elementary schools in two districts in southwest Washington. Based on systematic drop-in observations in classrooms and interviews with…

An Action Research Study Designed to Implement Student Negotiation to Improve Speaking Classroom Practice in Turkey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Uztosun, Mehmet Sercan; Skinner, Nigel; Cadorath, Jill

2014-01-01

This paper reports the second stage of an action research study designed to improve the effectiveness of speaking classes through negotiating the lesson contents with students. The data were collected through interviews, questionnaires and observations as a way of eliciting students' views. The research, conducted in an English language teaching…

A Psycholinguistic Description of the Development of Writing in Selected First Grade Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Milz, Vera E.

A study was conducted to examine writing development in first grade children. The writings from an entire classroom were collected. From these, six children's writings were chosen for cross-sectional analysis. Two children from this group were then selected for further in-depth case studies. Interviews, parent surveys, and observations were used…

Learning on the Job: A Situated Account of Teacher Learning in High School Mathematics Departments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Horn, Ilana Seidel

2005-01-01

To investigate teachers' everyday on-the-job learning, I used a comparative case study design and examined the work of mathematics teachers in 2 high schools. Analysis of interviews, classroom observations, and teachers' conversations highlighted 3 key resources for learning: (a) reform artifacts oriented the teachers' attention to key concepts of…

Challenges of First Years of Teaching in Turkey: Voices of Novice EFL Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sali, Pinar; Kecik, Ilknur

2018-01-01

The present study aims to describe the challenges as perceived by novice teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL). The participants of the study were seven (7) novice EFL teachers in public primary and secondary schools in Turkey. The data sources include semi-structured interviews, diary entries, video-recorded classroom observations and…

Learning That "Gay Is Okay": Educators and Boys Re/Constituting Heteronormativity through Sexual Health

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Slovin, L. J.

2016-01-01

In this paper, I draw on observations from sexual health workshops in an elementary school classroom in Vancouver, Canada and friendship pair interviews with four boys who attended the workshops. I examine how the educators organising the workshops constructed sexual health, highlighting their reliance on both a "gay is okay" and a…

Writing Attitudes and Practices of Content Area Teachers after Participating in the Central Utah Writing Project Summer Institute

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anson, Joseph P.

2017-01-01

This study of four case studies looks at how secondary math, music, science, and social studies teachers' attitudes and classroom practices were affected by their participation in the Central Utah Writing Project (CUWP) summer institute. Participant interviews, observations, and artifacts were analyzed by looking at themes for effective…

What Teachers Want: A Differentiated Technology Integration Coaching Model Examined through a Self-Study Framework

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hatten, Stephanie Hinshaw

2014-01-01

The purpose of this a narrative self-study is to explore the actions taken by a Technology Instructional Specialist to determine which actions are most beneficial for teachers integrating technology in the elementary classroom. The study uses interviews, observations, and journaling of events occurring with six teachers at three different…

"What's in It for Me?" A Study on Students' Accommodation or Resistance during Group Work

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Forslund Frykedal, Karin; Samuelsson, Marcus

2016-01-01

This article explores students' accommodation and resistance while participating in group work. The data collected are from fieldwork observations in several classrooms over the course of four terms in different secondary school classes in Sweden, and also from interviews with the students. Through this data analysis, we report that the students…

What Can Chinese and German Children Tell Us about Their Learning and Play in Kindergarten?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wu, Shu-Chen

2015-01-01

This study investigated Hong Kong and German children's perceptions of play and learning and their relationships. Forty-eight children (24 German and 24 Chinese) playing and learning in the classroom were observed and videotaped for five consecutive days. They were interviewed 3 times about their kindergarten experiences by using free- and…

Going against the Grain in an Urban Arizona High School: Secondary Preservice Teachers Emerging as Culturally Responsive Educators

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ramirez, Pablo; Jimenez-Silva, Margarita; Boozer, April; Clark, Ben

2016-01-01

This one year study examines the journey of two preservice urban high-school teachers in Arizona as they enact Culturally Responsive Teaching in a year-long student teaching residency. Factors that influenced their Culturally Responsive Teaching practices are discussed along themes that emerged from interviews and classroom observations.…

Patterns and Impacts of Short-Term Cross-Cultural Experience in Science and Mathematics Teaching: Benefits, Value, and Experience

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kanyaprasith, Kamonwan; Finley, Fred N.; Phonphok, Nason

2015-01-01

This study evaluates a cross-cultural experience in science and mathematics teaching in Thailand--an internship program. In this study, qualitative data sources including semi-structured interviews, classroom observations, and pre-post questionnaire were collected from five groups of participants, which were: (a) administrators; (b) Thai…

Writing Stories, Rewriting Identities: Using Journalism Education and Mobile Technologies to Empower Marginalized High School Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cybart-Persenaire, Alena; Literat, Ioana

2018-01-01

This study examines the impact that producing a print newspaper using cell phones had on marginalized students in a high school journalism classroom. Analysis of data from participant observation, artifact analysis and student interviews revealed that a) students negotiated cell phone use for educational purposes, despite school bans on such…

A Psychologist's View of Teacher Aide Training at Seattle Community College.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lunneborg, Patricia W.

This document is an evaluation of a New Careers elementary teacher aide program offered by the Family Life Department of Seattle Community College and funded by the Office of Economic Opportunity. Based on classroom observations, interviews with instructors and students, and the guidelines laid down by Pearl and Riessman in New Careers for the…

Developing and Enacting Pedagogical Content Knowledge for Teaching History: An Exploration of Two Novice Teachers' Growth over Three Years

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Monte-Sano, Chauncey; Budano, Christopher

2013-01-01

Using artifacts of teachers' practices, classroom observations, and teacher interviews, we explore the development and enactment of 2 novices' pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) for teaching history. We identify and track 4 components of PCK that are relevant to teaching history: representing history, transforming history, attending to students'…

Literacy in the Early Years and English as an Additional Language: The Case of a British International School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Englezou, Eliana; Fragkouli, Elpiniki

2014-01-01

The study upon which this article is based investigates teachers' literacy development methods used in nursery and reception classrooms of a British international school, and focuses specifically on children having English as an additional language (EAL). Findings from teaching observations and from interviews with teachers present the techniques…

The Study of Literacy Coaching Observations and Interviews with Elementary Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hayes, Rhonda S.

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study is to examine the coaching interactions of two literacy coaches and four classroom teachers in order to explore how these interactions serve to support teacher learning. The analysis of the study describes how the coaches support teacher reflection and teaching for processing strategies during guided reading lessons. The…

Three Korean Heritage Language Teachers' Identities, Their Identification of Their Students, and Their Instructional Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kim, Jung-In; Kim, Miseon

2016-01-01

This study examined the instructional focuses and practices of three Korean heritage language (HL) teachers in community-based HL schools related not only to their constructed identities as HL teachers, but also to their students. Constant-comparative analyses of interviews and classroom observations across the three teacher cases showed that each…

Exploration of the Implementation of Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports Framework in a Title I School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pope, Paula K.

2016-01-01

The study centered around two teams of teachers and their success and struggle in utilizing professional development to gain the knowledge necessary to adequately implement the Positive Intervention and Behavior Supports (PBIS) framework initiative into all areas of the school. Data collected through personal interviews, classroom observations,…

Teaching the Violent Past in Secondary Schools in Newly Independent South Sudan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Skårås, Merethe; Breidlid, Anders

2016-01-01

This article analyses the teaching and learning of South Sudan history from 1955--2005 in secondary schools in South Sudan with a specific focus on national unity. The article draws on two periods of focused ethnography, from September to December 2014 and July to September 2015, including classroom observation and interviews with teachers,…

Scientific Literacy in the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brewer, Carol

2008-01-01

In this interview, Brewer discusses the need to foster scientific literacy, knowing enough about science to be able to judge if an article in a newspaper or magazine, or commentary on a newscast or TV is being told in a fair and accurate way. The professor advocates asking questions and observation exercises as a means of empowering students to:…

Synchronous Teaching Techniques from the Perspective and Observation of Virtual High School Teachers: An Investigative Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Brien, Amy; Fuller, Richard

2018-01-01

This article describes how there are specific tools and techniques used by teachers in synchronous-live-virtual classroom environments. Those items were investigated in this article. Data was collected from semi-structured, one-on-one interviews conducted with a purposeful sample of twelve identified "highly-qualified" teachers at a…

Critical Resilience, Schooling Processes, and the Academic Success of Mexican Americans in a Community College

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Campa, Blanca

2010-01-01

This qualitative study adds new dimensions to the traditional paradigm of resilience through the lives of five Mexican American community college students. The term "critical resilience" emerges as a result of using ideology from a feminist critical perspective. In-depth interviews, classroom observations, and focus groups were used to learn how…

Peer Review and Nuanced Power Structures: Writing and Learning within the Age of Connectivism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abrams, Sandra Schamroth

2013-01-01

Through a Foucauldian lens, this article examines the affordances and constraints of an online peer-review program in four special education English language arts classes in two New York City middle schools. Data from classroom observations, teacher interviews, and online student spaces and artifacts provide insight into the technologies of power…

"The Right Path of Equality": Supporting High School Students with Autism Who Type to Communicate

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Woodfield, Casey; Ashby, Christine

2016-01-01

The inclusion of students who type to communicate has been researched and strategies to accommodate such students have been recommended, but little information has been gathered about the students' perspectives and daily school lives. This study utilises classroom observations and qualitative interviewing to explore the experiences of three high…

Perceptions of Co-Teaching: Closing the Achievement Gap between English Language Learners and Their English Monolingual Peers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ford-DeWaters, Carrie

2017-01-01

This qualitative exploratory single case research study used observations, semi-structured interviews, and document analysis to explore co-teachers' perceptions of the implementation of a co-teaching instructional model in elementary school general education classrooms with clusters of English learners (EL) in attendance. A total of four…

Teacher Knowledge and Learning "In-situ": A Case Study of the Long Division Algorithm

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Takker, Shikha; Subramaniam, K.

2018-01-01

The aim of the study reported in this paper was to explore and enhance experienced school mathematics teachers' knowledge of students'thinking, as it is manifested in practice. Data were collected from records of classroom observations, interviews with participating teachers, and weekly teacher-researcher meetings organized in the school. In this…

Children's Ideas about Animal Adaptations: An Action Research Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Endreny, Anna Henderson

2006-01-01

In this paper, I describe the action research I conducted in my third-grade science classrooms over the course of two years. In order to gain an understanding of my third-grade students' ideas about animal adaptations and how the teaching of a unit on crayfish influenced these ideas, I used clinical interviews, observations, and written…

Translanguaging Practices at a Bilingual University: A Case Study of a Science Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mazak, Catherine M.; Herbas-Donoso, Claudia

2015-01-01

The objective of this ethnographic case study is to describe in detail one professor's translanguaging practices in an undergraduate science course at an officially bilingual university. The data-set is comprised of ethnographic field notes of 11 observed classes, audio recordings of those classes, an interview with the professor, and artifacts…

What Makes the Difference? An Analysis of a Reading Intervention Programme Implemented in Rural Schools in Cambodia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Courtney, Jane; Gravelle, Maggie

2014-01-01

This article compares the existing single-strategy approach towards the teaching of early literacy in schools in rural Cambodia with a multiple-strategy approach introduced as part of a reading intervention programme. Classroom observations, questionnaires and in-depth interviews with teachers were used to explore teachers' practices and…

School-Based In-Service Teacher Training in Japan: Perspectives on Teachers' Professional Development.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arani, Mohammad Reza Sarkar

This paper uses the case study method to describe the characteristics of Japanese school-based inservice teacher training programs, which are designed to help teachers improve their competence and the quality of their teaching activities. Data come from observations of and interviews with teachers in classrooms within 10 public elementary schools.…

Biology, literacy, and the African American voice: A case study of meaningful learning in the biology classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reese, Keturah

Under the direction of Sharon Murphy Augustine, Ph.D./Ph.D Curriculum and Instruction There was a substantial performance gap among African Americans and other ethnic groups. Additionally, African American students in a Title I school were at a significantly high risk of not meeting or exceeding on performance tests in science. Past reports have shown average gains in some subject areas, and declines in others (NCES, 2011; GADOE, 2012). Current instructional strategies and the lack of literacy within the biology classroom created a problem for African American high school students on national and state assessments. The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of African American students and teachers in the context of literacy and biology through the incorporation of an interactive notebook and other literacy strategies. The data was collected three ways: field notes for a two week observation period within the biology classroom, student and teacher interviews, and student work samples. During the observations, student work collection, and interviews, I looked for the following codes: active learning, constructive learning, collaborative learning, authentic learning, and intentional learning. In the process of coding for the pre-determined codes, three more codes emerged. The three codes that emerged were organization, studying/student ownership, and student teacher relationships. Students and teachers both solidified the notion that literacy and biology worked well together. The implemented literacy strategies were something that both teachers and students appreciated in their learning of biology. Overall students and teachers perceived that the interactive notebook along Cornell notes, Thinking maps, close reads, writing, lab experiments, and group work created meaningful learning experiences within the biology classroom.

Assessing L2 Competency in Early Immersion Classrooms.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weber, Sandra; Tardif, Claudette

1991-01-01

Reports on a study that explored the use of puppets and classroom-based interview protocols as a practical way for teachers and researchers to get feedback on young students' learning in second-language classrooms. (21 references) (GLR)

How Exemplary Dyads Describe Their Practice of Collaborative Consultation: An Interview Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Levac, Michelle L.

2004-01-01

The purpose of this study was to understand and report how exemplary dyads describe their practice of collaborative consultation in inclusive classrooms. A dyad was made up of one resource teacher and one classroom teacher. This study discovered, through semi-structured interviews, how these educators collaborated and consulted as a team to meet…

ESL students learning biology: The role of language and social interactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jaipal, Kamini

This study explored three aspects related to ESL students in a mainstream grade 11 biology classroom: (1) the nature of students' participation in classroom activities, (2) the factors that enhanced or constrained ESL students' engagement in social interactions, and (3) the role of language in the learning of science. Ten ESL students were observed over an eight-month period in this biology classroom. Data were collected using qualitative research methods such as participant observation, audio-recordings of lessons, field notes, semi-structured interviews, short lesson recall interviews and students' written work. The study was framed within sociocultural perspectives, particularly the social constructivist perspectives of Vygotsky (1962, 1978) and Wertsch (1991). Data were analysed with respect to the three research aspects. Firstly, the findings showed that ESL students' preferred and exhibited a variety of participation practices that ranged from personal-individual to socio-interactive in nature. Both personal-individual and socio-interactive practices appeared to support science and language learning. Secondly, the findings indicated that ESL students' engagement in classroom social interactions was most likely influenced by the complex interactions between a number of competing factors at the individual, interpersonal and community/cultural levels (Rogoff, Radziszewska, & Masiello, 1995). In this study, six factors that appeared to enhance or constrain ESL students' engagement in classroom social interactions were identified. These factors were socio-cultural factors, prior classroom practice, teaching practices, affective factors, English language proficiency, and participation in the research project. Thirdly, the findings indicated that language played a significant mediational role in ESL students' learning of science. The data revealed that the learning of science terms and concepts can be explained by a functional model of language that includes: (1) the use of discourse to construct meanings, (2) multiple semiotic representations of the thing/process, and (3) constructing taxonomies and ways of reasoning. Other important findings were: talking about language is integral to biology teaching and learning, ESL students' prior knowledge of everyday words does not necessarily help them interpret written questions on worksheets, and ESL students' prior knowledge of concepts in their first language does not necessarily support concept learning in the second language.

Facilitating cultural border crossing in urban secondary science classrooms: A study of inservice teachers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Monteiro, Anna Karina

Research acknowledges that if students are to be successful science, they must learn to navigate and cross cultural borders that exist between their own cultures and the subculture of science. This dissertation utilized a mixed methods approach to explore how inservice science teachers working in urban schools construct their ideas of and apply the concepts about the culture of science and cultural border crossing as relevant to the teaching and learning of science. The study used the lenses of cultural capital, social constructivism, and cultural congruency in the design and analysis of each of the three phases of data collection. Phase I identified the perspectives of six inservice science teachers on science culture, cultural border crossing, and which border crossing methods, if any, they used during science teaching. Phase II took a dialectical approach as the teachers read about science culture and cultural border crossing during three informal professional learning community meetings. This phase explored how teachers constructed their understanding of cultural border crossing and how the concept applied to the teaching and learning of science. Phase III evaluated how teachers' perspectives changed from Phase I. In addition, classroom observations were used to determine whether teachers' practices in their science classrooms changed from Phase I to Phase III. All three phases collected data through qualitative (i.e., interviews, classroom observations, and surveys) and quantitative (Likert items) means. The findings indicated that teachers found great value in learning about the culture of science and cultural border crossing as it pertained to their teaching methods. This was not only evidenced by their interviews and surveys, but also in the methods they used in their classrooms. Final conclusions included how the use of student capital resources (prior experiences, understandings and knowledge, ideas an interests, and personal beliefs), if supported by science practices and skills increases student cultural capital. With a greater cultural capital, the students experience cultural congruency between their cultures and the culture of science, enabling them to cross such borders in the science classroom. The implications such findings have on teacher training programs and professional development are discussed.

Practicing What We Teach: A Self-Study in Implementing an Inquiry-Based Curriculum in a Middle Grades Classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dias, Michael; Eick, Charles J.; Brantley-Dias, Laurie

2011-02-01

A science teacher educator returned to teaching adolescents after more than 10 years in the professoriate. We studied his beliefs, practice and daily use of inquiry pedagogy while implementing a reform-based curriculum. Reflection on practice was evidenced by a weekly journal, classroom observations and debriefings, and extensive interviews. Newly developed practical knowledge from this experience shifted the science teacher educator's beliefs away from the Piagetian structuralism espoused in prescribed curricula towards a more culturally responsive, student-driven approach to teaching science to middle grades students. The merits and limitations of curricula attempting to follow traditional scientific practices are discussed.

An analysis of women's ways of knowing in a 10th grade integrated science classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kochheiser, Karen Lynn

All students can learn science, but how they learn science may differ. This study is about learning science and its relationship to gender. Women need to develop and establish connections with the objects that they are learning and be able to establish a voice in a science classroom. Unfortunately, traditional science classrooms still view science as a male domain and tend to discourage women from pursuing higher levels of science or science related careers. The ways that women learn science are a very complex set of interactions. In order to describe these interactions, this study explored how women's ways of knowing are represented in a high school science classroom. Nine women from an enriched integrated biology and earth science class contributed to this study. The women contributed to this study by participating in individual and group interviews, questionnaires, journals, observations and participant review of the interviews. The ways that these women learn science were described in terms of Belenky, Clinchy, Goldberger, and Tarule's Women's Ways of Knowing: The Development of Self, Voice, and Mind (1997). The women's ways of learning in this classroom tended to be situational with the women fitting different categories of knowing depending on the situation. Most of the women demonstrated periods of time where they wanted to be heard or tried to establish a voice in the classroom. The study helps to provide a theory for how women make choices in their learning of science and the struggle to be successful in a male dominated discipline. The women participating in this study gained an awareness of how they learn science and how that can be used to make them even more successful in the classroom. The awareness of how women learn science will also be of great benefit to other teachers and educators as the work for science reform continues to make science a 'science for all'.

Exploring multiliteracies, student voice, and scientific practices in two elementary classrooms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Allison, Elizabeth Rowland

This study explored the voices of children in a changing world with evolving needs and new opportunities. The workplaces of rapidly moving capitalist societies value creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking skills which are of growing importance and manifesting themselves in modern K-12 science classroom cultures (Gee, 2000; New London Group, 2000). This study explored issues of multiliteracies and student voice set within the context of teaching and learning in 4th and 5th grade science classrooms. The purpose of the study was to ascertain what and how multiliteracies and scientific practices (NGSS Lead States, 2013c) are implemented, explore how multiliteracies influence students' voices, and investigate teacher and student perceptions of multiliteracies, student voice, and scientific practices. Grounded in a constructivist framework, a multiple case study was employed in two elementary classrooms. Through observations, student focus groups and interviews, and teacher interviews, a detailed narrative was created to describe a range of multiliteracies, student voice, and scientific practices that occurred with the science classroom context. Using grounded theory analysis, data were coded and analyzed to reveal emergent themes. Data analysis revealed that these two classrooms were enriched with multiliteracies that serve metaphorically as breeding grounds for student voice. In the modern classroom, defined as a space where information is instantly accessible through the Internet, multiliteracies can be developed through inquiry-based, collaborative, and technology-rich experiences. Scientific literacy, cultivated through student communication and collaboration, is arguably a multiliteracy that has not been considered in the literature, and should be, as an integral component of overall individual literacy in the 21st century. Findings revealed four themes. Three themes suggest that teachers address several modes of multiliteracies in science, but identify barriers to integrating multiliteracies and scientific practices into science teaching. The issues include time, increased standards accountability, and lack of comfort with effective integration of technology. The fourth theme revealed that students have the ability to shape and define their learning while supporting other voices through collaborative science experiences.

The impact of instructor grouping strategies on student efficacy in inquiry science labs: A phenomenological case study of grouping perceptions and strategies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miller, Nathaniel J.

Abundant educational research has integrated Albert Bandura's concepts of self-efficacy and collective efficacy within educational settings. In this phenomenological case study, the investigation sought to capture the manifestation of self-efficacy and collective efficacy within inquiry-based science laboratory courses. Qualitative data was derived from student efficacy surveys, direct classroom observations, and three-tiered interviews with teacher participants. Four high school science instructors and their students from two school districts in Northern Illinois were selected to participate in the study. This study sought to identify instructor strategies or criteria used to formulate student laboratory groups and the impact of such groupings on student self-efficacy and collective efficacy. Open coding of interview transcripts, observation logs, and student surveys led to the development of eight emerging themes. These themes included the purpose of science laboratory activities, instructor grouping strategies, instructor roles, instructor's perceptions, science laboratory assessment, student interactions, learner self-perceptions, and grouping preferences. Results from the study suggest that some students were innately inclined to assume leadership roles, smaller groupings had greater participation from all group members, students had a strong preference for working collaboratively in groups, and students desired to maintain stable laboratory groups in lieu of periodically changing laboratory partners. As with all case study methodologies, the findings of the study were limited to the individual participants at research sites and were not generalizable to all science classrooms. Additional research in the realms of group size, group autonomy, and student interviews would provide even greater insights into the observed phenomena.

L1 and L2 in the Education of Inuit Children in Northern Quebec: Abilities and Perceptions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Spada, Nina; Lightbown, Patsy M.

2002-01-01

Observed primary and secondary classrooms in which students received instruction in their second language (L2), interviewed teachers about students' knowledge and use of the first language and second language, and examined the students' ability to understand and produce written and oral samples in their L2. Students were Inuits in Northern Quebec…

"I Just Do as Expected". Teachers' Implementation of Continuous Assessment and Challenges to Curriculum Literacy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nsibande, Rejoice N.; Modiba, Maropeng M.

2012-01-01

This paper reports on a study that clarifies the nature and scope of the challenges experienced by primary school teachers in Swaziland when using Continuous Assessment (CA) as a tool to improve teaching and learning. Through the use of classroom observations and stimulated recall interviews, we sought to understand the significance of the choices…

Speaking Up: Six Korean Students' Oral Participation in Class Discussions in US Graduate Seminars

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Given

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to explore the factors that influenced the oral classroom participation of six Korean students attending graduate school in the US, and how these factors impacted their oral interaction in class discussions. Data came from formal and informal interviews and class observations over the course of the semester.…

The Cultural and Intercultural Identities of Transnational English Teachers: Two Case Studies from the Americas

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Menard-Warwick, Julia

2008-01-01

This article presents case studies of two long-time English language teachers: a California English as a second language instructor originally from Brazil, and a Chilean English as a foreign language teacher who worked for many years in the United States before returning home. Based on interview and classroom observation data, this research…

The Unfolding of a Pre-Kindergarten Program for Four Year Olds.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bouchard, Ruth Ann; Mackler, Bernard

This report provides an in-depth description of an early (1965) Head Start classroom for 4-year-olds in Harlem, New York City. It is based on direct, in-class observation, but standardized tests and interviews were also utilized. The teacher is described in terms of her role in the preschool, and her behavior in interaction with children and…

"You Have to Know the Past to (Blog) the Present": Using an Educational Blog to Engage Students in U.S. History

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Manfra, Meghan McGlinn; Lee, John K.

2012-01-01

In this study the authors investigate whether a whole-class educational blog could facilitate culturally relevant instruction and authentic intellectual work in U.S. history. Qualitative data were collected and analyzed that included student comments posted to an educational blog, classroom observations, and follow-up interviews. Based on the…

Effects of Collaborative Mentoring on the Articulation of Training and Classroom Situations: A Case Study in the French School System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chalies, Sebastien; Bertone, Stefano; Flavier, Eric; Durand, Marc

2008-01-01

This study assessed the effects of a collaborative mentoring sequence on the professional development of a preservice teacher (PT). The analysis of data from observation and self-confrontation interviews identified work rules [Wittgenstein, L. (1996). In G. E. M. Anscomb & G. H. Von Wright (Eds.), "Remarques philosophiques"…

A Case Study: The Role of Student-Generated Vidcasts in K-12 Language Learner Academic Language and Content Acquisition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Green, Lucy Santos; Inan, Fethi A.; Maushak, Nancy J.

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study was to explore the integration of vidcasts as student-generated products in English as a second language (ESL) classrooms. We collected qualitative data through observations, student artifacts, and semistructured interviews from 16 reading students at a public middle school located in the southwestern United States. Study…

Promoting Social-Constructivist Pedagogy through Using Webquests in Teaching EFL Pre-Service Teachers in Macedonia: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zlatkovska, Emilija

2012-01-01

Using critical ethnography (Carspecken, 1996), by employing classroom observations, interviews, and survey data collection, this study explored the process of introducing a WebQuest lesson, i.e. specific web-supported and inquiry-based lessons as part of the teacher training curriculum at a Macedonian university and the potential impact of the…

Reading Practices of Pre-Service Teachers in the United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Huang, SuHua

2017-01-01

The purpose of this mixed method study was to investigate the reading practices of pre-service teachers in the United States. A total of 395 (38 male and 357 female) pre-service teachers completed a self-reported survey. In addition, 45 (10 males and 35 females) of the 395 voluntarily agreed to participate in interviews and classroom observations.…

Keeping Kids Reading: How To Raise Avid Readers in the Video Age.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leonhardt, Mary

This book aims to show parents how to instill the love of reading in their children and how to nurture that love throughout their lives, even in the face of television, video, and computer entertainment. The book is based on the concept of "reading pathways," developed after more than 20 years of classroom observation and interviews. It…

"Do Books Like These Have Authors?" New Roles for Text and New Demands on Students in Integrated Science-Literacy Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sørvik, Gard Ove; Blikstad-Balas, Marte; Ødegaard, Marianne

2015-01-01

We report on research that explores students' literacy practices in six Norwegian primary school science classrooms during integrated science-literacy instruction. The study combines observational video data and interview data to examine students' encounters with and use of text, along with their views and experiences related to science and…

Dirt on My Record: Rethinking Disciplinary Practices in an All-Black, All-Male Alternative Class

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nasir, Na'Ilah Suad; Ross, Kihana Miraya; McKinney de Royston, Maxine; Givens, Jarvis; Bryant, Jalessa N.

2013-01-01

In this empirical study, the authors draw on classroom observations and interviews with twenty-three Black male ninth graders in an urban district to focus on the nature of disciplinary practices in an all-Black, all-male manhood development class. While scholars have identified the "discipline gap" as a salient aspect of the experience…

Investigating Zimbabwean Mathematics Teachers' Dispositions on the "O" Level Calculator Syllabus 4028

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nyaumwe, Lovemore

2006-01-01

The questionnaire responses of 38 secondary school mathematics teachers provided initial data for this study. About 26.3% (n = 10) of this number was sampled for classroom observation and in-depth interviews in order to assess the consistency of the dispositions. Only 15.8% of the schools in the study adopted the calculator version of the…

"She Don't Know I Got It. You Ain't Gonna Tell Her, Are You?" Popular Culture as Resistance in American Preschools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Henward, Allison S.

2015-01-01

Popular culture is often a site of contestation in preschool classrooms. A multisited ethnographic design revealed preschools employed varied strategies to limit popular culture. Teacher and children's actions were considered through Michel de Certeau's (1984) concepts of tactics and strategies. Interviews and observations revealed children were…

Students' Learning Experiences When Using a Dynamic Geometry Software Tool in a Geometry Lesson at Secondary School in Ethiopia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Denbel, Dejene Girma

2015-01-01

Students learning experiences were investigated in geometry lesson when using Dynamic Geometry Software (DGS) tool in geometry learning in 25 Ethiopian secondary students. The research data were drawn from the used worksheets, classroom observations, results of pre- and post-test, a questionnaire and interview responses. I used GeoGebra as a DGS…

Training for the New Work Order: The Adult Classroom as a Site of Class(ed) Work

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Santoro, Ninetta

2005-01-01

This paper reports on a qualitative case study that investigated how the professional identities of trainers in the adult sector in Australia are shaped by intersecting relations of social class, ethnicity, gender and the discourses of vocational adult education. Interviews with two trainers as well as observations of them at work are analysed and…

What Is Intended, What Is Realized, and What Is Learned? Teaching and Learning Biology in the Primary School Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vikstrom, Anna

2008-01-01

Within the framework of variation theory, 7- to 12-year-old students' ways of understanding cellular respiration and photosynthesis were investigated against the background of their teachers' teaching. Eighteen students were selected by the teachers and interviewed by the researcher. Lessons were observed and video recorded, and stimulated-recall…

A Cross-Cultural Comparison of Music Education Experiences and Ambitions in Two Spanish and English Primary Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hardcastle, Elinor; Pitts, Stephanie; Aróstegui, José Luis

2017-01-01

A small-scale comparative study of music education provision in two Spanish and English primary schools was carried out in 2013-14, using questionnaires, interviews and observations. The study investigated the musical experiences of the children in the two schools, their ambitions for their musical futures, and the classroom practices and policy…

Language Ideologies in a U.S. State-Funded International School: The Invisible Linguistic Repertoires of Bilingual Refugee Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Solano-Campos, Ana

2017-01-01

In this study, I investigated language ideologies in a state-funded International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme school in the United States. I conducted ethnographic observations, focus groups, and interviews in a fourth grade classroom in one of the largest refugee resettlement areas in the country. Findings indicate that although the…

Question Asking in the Science Classroom: Teacher Attitudes and Practices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eshach, Haim; Dor-Ziderman, Yair; Yefroimsky, Yana

2014-02-01

Despite the wide agreement among educators that classroom learning and teaching processes can gain much from student and teacher questions, their potential is not fully utilized. Adopting the view that reporting both teachers' (of varying age groups) views and actual classroom practices is necessary for obtaining a more complete view of the phenomena at hand, the present study closely examines both cognitive and affective domains of: (a) teachers' views (via interviews) concerning: (1) importance and roles of teacher and student questions, (2) teacher responses, and (3) planning and teacher training; and (b) teachers' actual practices (via classroom observations) concerning: (1) number and (2) level of teacher and student questions, as well as (3) teachers' responses to questions. The data were collected from 3 elementary, 3 middle, and 3 high school science teachers and their respective classroom students. The findings lay out a wide view of classroom questioning and teachers' responses, and relate what actually occurs in classes to teachers' stated views. Some of the study's main conclusions are that a gap exists between how science researchers and teachers view the role of teacher questions: the former highlight the cognitive domain, while the latter emphasize the affective domain.

The effect of a science work experience program for teachers on the classroom environment: A qualitative program evaluation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Frazier, Wendy Michelle

Science Work Experience Programs for Teachers (SWEPTs) provide an opportunity for science and math teachers to work in research laboratories during the summer to experience science as it is practiced in the laboratory-setting. Through the use of interviews with teachers and students, classroom observations, and an analysis of printed student sheets and student work, the lived experience of a cohort of program participants in Columbia University's Summer Research Program for Secondary School Science Teachers was recorded in an effort to describe the effect of experience in a SWEPT on the classroom environment of teacher participants and student outcomes. Relying on Social Learning Theory and science education reform documentation as a theoretical framework the following dimensions of the classroom were examined: (1) emergent themes that include the participants' perceptions of the importance of technology in the classroom, (2) interpersonal relationships with the teachers at the participants' schools, fellow program participants, research scientists, and students, and (3) changes in epistemological structure, curriculum, instructional strategies, and classroom practices. Methodological and theoretical implications are addressed with respect to future studies, and suggestions for refinement of SWEPTs are provided.

A case study on the formation and sharing process of science classroom norms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chang, Jina; Song, Jinwoong

2016-03-01

The teaching and learning of science in school are influenced by various factors, including both individual factors, such as member beliefs, and social factors, such as the power structure of the class. To understand this complex context affected by various factors in schools, we investigated the formation and sharing process of science classroom norms in connection with these factors. By examining the developmental process of science classroom norms, we identified how the norms were realized, shared, and internalized among the members. We collected data through classroom observations and interviews focusing on two elementary science classrooms in Korea. From these data, factors influencing norm formation were extracted and developed as stories about norm establishment. The results indicate that every science classroom norm was established, shared, and internalized differently according to the values ingrained in the norms, the agent of norm formation, and the members' understanding about the norm itself. The desirable norms originating from values in science education, such as having an inquiring mind, were not established spontaneously by students, but were instead established through well-organized norm networks to encourage concrete practice. Educational implications were discussed in terms of the practice of school science inquiry, cultural studies, and value-oriented education.

Preventing alcohol misuse in young people aged 9-11 years through promoting family communication: an exploratory evaluation of the Kids, Adults Together (KAT) Programme

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background Alcohol misuse by young people is an important public health issue, and has led to the development of a range of prevention interventions. Evidence concerning the most effective approaches to intervention design and implementation is limited. Parental involvement in school-based interventions is important, but many programmes fail to recruit large numbers of parents. This paper reports findings from an exploratory evaluation of a new alcohol misuse prevention programme - Kids, Adults Together (KAT), which comprised a classroom component, engagement with parents through a fun evening for families with children aged 9-11 years, and a DVD. The evaluation aimed to establish the programme's theoretical basis, explore implementation processes and acceptability, and identify plausible precursors of the intended long-term outcomes. Methods Documentary analysis and interviews with key personnel examined the programme's development. Classroom preparation and KAT family events in two schools were observed. Focus groups with children, and interviews with parents who attended KAT family events were held immediately after programme delivery, and again after three months. Interviews with head teachers and with teachers who delivered the classroom preparation were conducted. Follow-up interviews with programme personnel were undertaken. Questionnaires were sent to parents of all children involved in classroom preparation. Results KAT achieved high levels of acceptability and involvement among both children and parents. Main perceived impacts of the programme were increased pro-social communication within families (including discussions about harmful parental alcohol consumption), heightened knowledge and awareness of the effects of alcohol consumption and key legal and health issues, and changes in parental drinking behaviours. Conclusions KAT demonstrated promise as a prevention intervention, primarily through its impact on knowledge and communication processes within families, and its ability to engage with large numbers of parents. A key programme mechanism was the classroom preparation's facilitation of parental involvement in the family fun evening. The programme also incorporated features identified in the literature as likely to increase effectiveness, including a focus on harm reduction, interactive delivery, and targeting primary-school-age children. Further research is needed to test and develop programme theory through implementation in different school contexts, and to examine potential longer-term impacts, and the feasibility of large scale delivery. PMID:22004185

Peer-led, school-based nutrition education for young adolescents: feasibility and process evaluation of the TEENS study.

PubMed

Story, Mary; Lytle, Leslie A; Birnbaum, Amanda S; Perry, Cheryl L

2002-03-01

Peer education has become a popular strategy for health promotion interventions with adolescents, but it has not been used widely in school-based nutrition education. This paper describes and reports on the feasibility of the peer leader component of a school-based nutrition intervention for young adolescents designed to increase fruit and vegetable intakes and lower fat foods. About 1,000 seventh-grade students in eight schools received the nutrition intervention. Of these, 272 were trained as peer leaders to assist the teacher in implementing the activities. Results from a multicomponent process evaluation based on peer leader and classroom student feedback, direct classroom observation, and teacher ratings and interviews are presented. Results show that peer-led nutrition education approaches in schools are feasible and have high acceptability among peer leaders, classroom students, and teachers.

Effective teaching in the contexts of Internet science projects: American and Russian teachers' perspectives of best practices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mumma, Brian

Statement of the problem. Science education literature had agreed that an important goal in students' learning is the development of scientific and technological literacy. One effort that teachers have integrated into their practices for addressing this goal has been teaching within the contexts of Internet Science Projects. Greater awareness of teachers' perspectives of their best practices and their beliefs and reasons for these practices in the contexts of Internet Science Projects can improve the quality of science education programs. Methods. A series of pilot interviews was conducted during the 2000--2001 school year to develop the guiding questions for inquiring into teachers' perspectives of their best practices within the contexts of Internet Science Projects. This series of interviews resulted in the understanding of the need to select teachers with experiences with Internet Science Projects and to conduct in-depth phenomenological interviews for learning from their voices. Two teachers were purposefully selected as the participant-informants for this study, one an American elementary teacher from Walker County, Georgia, and one a Russian teacher from St. Petersburg, Russia. The study was conducted from October through December 2001. The data collected for this qualitative study consisted of a series of in-depth phenomenological interviews, classroom observations, and the collection and analysis of various artifacts including teacher journals, student products, and e-mail/bulletin board transcripts. The interview structure was based upon a modification of expanding Seidman's (1998) three interview series into multiple interviews concluded upon the determination of saturation of the topic. The series of interviews were composed of (1) life history focus; (2) the details of the experience of teaching within the contexts of Internet Science Projects; and (3) reflection on the meanings. The data analysis consisted of applying Strauss & Corbin's (1990) open coding structure. Results. The results of this study revealed that these teachers carried their best practices from traditional teaching into their practices in the contexts of Internet Science Projects. The teachers created student-centered learning environments by focusing upon their classroom structure over that of the Internet Science Project. The teachers created strong local learning experiences inside an outside of their classroom environments where students were able to build strong understandings of the topic area before becoming engaged in virtual collaborations and Internet communications. This engagement allowed success in the face of any contingencies that might prevent or limit the ability for the teachers' classrooms to actively collaborate across the Internet. The teachers built their practices in Internet Science Projects upon questions prompted by their students' real world experiences, developed local understandings before progressing into exchanges for global collaborations, and built worldview perspectives.

Implementation of Teacher Consultation and Coaching in Urban Schools: A Mixed Method Study

PubMed Central

Cappella, Elise; Jackson, Daisy R.; Kim, Ha Yeon; Bilal, Caroline; Holland, Sibyl; Atkins, Marc S.

2015-01-01

Guided by implementation science scholarship and school mental health research, the current study uses qualitative and quantitative data to illuminate the barriers, opportunities, and processes underlying the implementation of a teacher consultation and coaching model (BRIDGE) in urban elementary schools. Data come from five public elementary schools, 12 school mental health staff (BRIDGE consultants), and 18 teachers participating in a classroom-randomized trial of BRIDGE. Findings from directed content analysis of teacher focus group and interview data suggest that aspects of the BRIDGE intervention model, school organization and classroom contexts, and teachers/consultants and their relationship were relevant as implementation facilitators or barriers. In addition, case study analysis of intervention materials and fidelity tools from classrooms with moderate-to-high dosage and adherence suggest variation in consultation and coaching by initial level of observed classroom need. Results illuminate the need for implementation research to extend beyond simple indicators of fidelity to the multiple systems and variation in processes at play across levels of the implementation context. PMID:27293490

Children's Perceptions of Their Reading Ability and Epistemic Roles in Monologically and Dialogically Organized Bilingual Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aukerman, Maren; Chambers Schuldt, Lorien

2015-01-01

This study examines how bilingual second-grade students perceived of their reading competence and of the work of reading in two contrasting settings where texts were regularly discussed: a monologically organized classroom (MOC) and a dialogically organized classroom (DOC; as determined by prior analysis of classroom discourse). Interview data…

Motivational Interviewing for Effective Classroom Management: The Classroom Check-Up. Practical Intervention in the Schools Series

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reinke, Wendy M.; Herman, Keith C.; Sprick, Randy

2011-01-01

Highly accessible and user-friendly, this book focuses on helping K-12 teachers increase their use of classroom management strategies that work. It addresses motivational aspects of teacher consultation that are essential, yet often overlooked. The Classroom Check-Up is a step-by-step model for assessing teachers' organizational, instructional,…

Using News Articles to Build a Critical Literacy Classroom in an EFL Setting

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Park, Yujong

2011-01-01

This article examines an effort to support critical literacy in an English as a foreign language (EFL) setting by analyzing one college EFL reading classroom in which students read and responded to articles from "The New Yorker". Data include transcribed audiotapes of classroom interaction and interviews with students, classroom materials, and…

Teachers' Organization of Participation Structures for Teaching Science with Computer Technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Subramaniam, Karthigeyan

2016-08-01

This paper describes a qualitative study that investigated the nature of the participation structures and how the participation structures were organized by four science teachers when they constructed and communicated science content in their classrooms with computer technology. Participation structures focus on the activity structures and processes in social settings like classrooms thereby providing glimpses into the complex dynamics of teacher-students interactions, configurations, and conventions during collective meaning making and knowledge creation. Data included observations, interviews, and focus group interviews. Analysis revealed that the dominant participation structure evident within participants' instruction with computer technology was ( Teacher) initiation-( Student and Teacher) response sequences-( Teacher) evaluate participation structure. Three key events characterized the how participants organized this participation structure in their classrooms: setting the stage for interactive instruction, the joint activity, and maintaining accountability. Implications include the following: (1) teacher educators need to tap into the knowledge base that underscores science teachers' learning to teach philosophies when computer technology is used in instruction. (2) Teacher educators need to emphasize the essential idea that learning and cognition is not situated within the computer technology but within the pedagogical practices, specifically the participation structures. (3) The pedagogical practices developed with the integration or with the use of computer technology underscored by the teachers' own knowledge of classroom contexts and curriculum needs to be the focus for how students learn science content with computer technology instead of just focusing on how computer technology solely supports students learning of science content.

What Do Paraeducators in Inclusive Classrooms Say about Their Work? Analysis of National Survey Data and Follow-Up Interviews in California

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liston, Andrea G.; Nevin, Ann; Malian, Ida

2009-01-01

What advice do paraeducators offer regarding the work they do in inclusive classrooms? What barriers and benefits do paraeducators face? In this study, over 200 paraeducators from 38 different states in the USA volunteered to respond to a national survey. Their responses were corroborated in follow-up interviews with 27 different paraeducators at…

ADHD Diagnosis: As Simple As Administering a Questionnaire or a Complex Diagnostic Process?

PubMed

Parker, Ashton; Corkum, Penny

2016-06-01

The present study investigated the validity of using the Conners' Teacher and Parent Rating Scales (CTRS/CPRS) or semistructured diagnostic interviews (Parent Interview for Child Symptoms and Teacher Telephone Interview) to predict a best-practices clinical diagnosis of ADHD. A total of 279 children received a clinical diagnosis based on a best-practices comprehensive assessment (including diagnostic parent and teacher interviews, collection of historical information, rating scales, classroom observations, and a psychoeducational assessment) at a specialty ADHD Clinic in Truro, Nova Scotia, Canada. Sensitivity and specificity with clinical diagnosis were determined for the ratings scales and diagnostic interviews. Sensitivity and specificity values were high for the diagnostic interviews (91.8% and 70.7%, respectively). However, while sensitivity of the CTRS/CPRS was relatively high (83.5%), specificity was poor (35.7%). The low specificity of the CPRS/CTRS is not sufficient to be used alone to diagnose ADHD. (J. of Att. Dis. 2016; 20(6) 478-486). © The Author(s) 2013.

Teaching and nature: Middle school science teachers' relationship with nature in personal and classroom contexts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ball, Nadine Butcher

2000-10-01

This qualitative study describes three middle-school science teachers' relationship-with-nature in personal and classroom contexts. Participating teachers had more than 7 years experience and were deemed exemplary practitioners by others. Interview data about personal context focused on photographs the teacher took representing her/his relationship-with-nature in daily life. Interview data for classroom context explored classroom events during three or more researcher observations. Transcripts were analyzed using a multiple-readings approach to data reduction (Gilligan, Brown & Rogers, 1990; Miles & Huberman, 1994, p. 14, 141). Readings generated categorical information focused on portrayals of: nature; self; and relationship-with-nature. Categorical data were synthesized into personal and teaching case portraits for each teacher, and cross case themes identified. Participants indicated the portraits accurately represented who they saw themselves to be. Additional readings identified sub-stories by plot and theme. Narrative data were clustered to highlight elements of practice with implications for the relationship-with-nature lived in the classroom. These individual-scale moments were compared with cultural-scale distinctions between anthropocentric and ecological world views. Cross case themes included dimensions of exemplary middle-school science teaching important to teacher education and development, including an expanded conception of knowing and skillful use of student experience. Categorical analysis revealed each teacher had a unique organizing theme influencing their interpretation of personal and classroom events, and that nature is experienced differently in personal as opposed to teaching contexts. Narrative analysis highlights teachers' stories of classroom pets, dissection, and student dissent, illustrating an interplay between conceptual distinctions and personal dimensions during moments of teacher decision making. Results suggest teachers' competing commitments are resolved by balancing values in unique ways for the context. More productive resolutions involve transformation of the teacher's tensions so that competing goals better coexist. Foci helpful for teacher education and development are identified. Also discussed are complex ways cultural-scale world view is reproduced, or occasionally challenged, in the classroom life of three scientifically literate, skilled, and environmentally concerned teachers. The study concludes education in schools is more likely to reproduce than challenge elements of world view contributing to ecological decline.

A Case Study of the In-Class Use of a Video Game for Teaching High School History

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Watson, William R.; Mong, Christopher J.; Harris, Constance A.

2011-01-01

This study examines the case of a sophomore high school history class where "Making History", a video game designed with educational purposes in mind, is used in the classroom to teach about World War II. Data was gathered using observation, focus group and individual interviews, and document analysis. The high school was a rural school…

Meeting the Needs of Gifted and Talented Students: Case Study of a Virtual Learning Lab in a Rural Middle School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Swan, Bonnie; Coulombe-Quach, Xuan-Lise; Huang, Angela; Godek, Jaime; Becker, Deborah; Zhou, Yan

2015-01-01

Researchers used case study methods to investigate a virtual learning lab (VLL) in a rural school district that was created in 2011 as a way to better meet the unique needs of exceptional students who are considered gifted. Data were collected through focus groups, classroom observations, interviews, and reviewing relevant documents. Topics…

"Even Though I Am Married, I Have a Dream": Constructing L2 Gendered Identities through Narratives of Departure and Arrival

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Giroir, Shannon

2014-01-01

This paper reports on the findings of a multiple case study to show how 3 women constructed meaning around the processes of L2 learning and migration and (re)constructed identities through their participation in new communities of practice (CoPs). Data sources include formal classroom observations, in-depth interviews, and the participants'…

An Examination of Teachers' Perceptions and Practice when Teaching Large and Reduced-Size Classes: Do Teachers Really Teach Them in the Same Way?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harfitt, Gary James

2012-01-01

Class size research suggests that teachers do not vary their teaching strategies when moving from large to smaller classes. This study draws on interviews and classroom observations of three experienced English language teachers working with large and reduced-size classes in Hong Kong secondary schools. Findings from the study point to subtle…

An Examination of the Impact of One-to-One Computing When Used as a Tool for Student Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Keppler, Michael P.

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine whether or not the use of net-book technology in the classroom altered the writing process for elementary students. The impetus for this study stemmed from the fact that more research needs to be conducted utilizing observations and interviews to examine the relationship between one-to-one technology use…

Multiple Repertoires of Ways of Being and Acting in Music: Immigrant Students' Musical Agency as an Impetus for Democracy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Karlsen, Sidsel

2012-01-01

The aim of this article is to explore how immigrant students experience and enact musical agency inside and outside the music lessons in three Nordic lower secondary schools. The research was designed as a multi-sited ethnographic study and the data were collected in Helsinki, Stockholm and Oslo through classroom observations and interviews with…

"The Blue Table Means You Don't Have a Clue": The Persistence of Fixed-Ability Thinking and Practices in Primary Mathematics in English Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marks, Rachel

2013-01-01

The use of structured ability grouping is increasing in English primary schools and is regularly seen in primary mathematics classrooms. Ability is a normalised discourse with beliefs that some individuals are "born to do maths" permeating society and infiltrating school practices. In this article, observation and interview data…

Teachers' Experience in Implementing Cooperative Learning in the Classrooms (Phenomenological Research at Junior High School Classrooms in Ponorogo, East Java, Indonesia)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harjali

2017-01-01

This study aimed to investigate the teachers' perception toward the implementation of cooperative learning in the classroom. The research applied a qualitative phenomenological design that used a purposeful sample of six teachers at Junior High School Classrooms in Ponorogo, East Java, Indonesia. Data collected via in-depth interviews, participant…

Literacy Development of Linguistically Diverse First Graders in a Mainstream English Classroom: Connecting Speaking and Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kennedy, Eileen

2006-01-01

Children who speak different home languages and dialects in a monolingual classroom often carry the challenge of having to develop literacy in a different language. This article presents a qualitative study of five first graders who speak different home languages in an inner city mainstream English classroom. Through interviews, classroom writing,…

The Effects of Incorporating Classroom Pets into the Fourth Grade Science Curriculum

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Admire, Maegan

The purpose of this study was to identify and promote successful teaching strategies that incorporate classroom pets in order to influence student engagement, achievement, and perceptions of animals. This was a small action research study conducted in a fourth grade science classroom. Both quantitative and qualitative data were obtained including, pre- and post-assessments, student interviews, researcher field notes, researcher journal, and student work. The results of this study revealed an increased academic achievement from the pre- to post-assessment, increased student observations and descriptions when discussing the animals, and increased student empathy toward the animals. The results also revealed that the teacher's incorporation of the animals within the science curriculum grew in ease over time, and that the animals provided the educator with opportunities to teach non-content related lessons and also a concrete experience for the teacher to apply and extend the science content.

Interactive whiteboards in third grade science instruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rivers, Grier

Strategies have been put into place to affect improvement in science achievement, including the use of Interactive Whiteboards (IWBs) in science instruction. IWBs enable rich resources, appropriate pacing, and multimodal presentation of content deemed as best practices. Professional development experiences, use of resources, instructional practices, and changes in professional behavior in science teachers were recorded. Also recorded were differences in the engagement and motivation of students in IWB classrooms versus IWB-free classrooms and observed differences in students' problem solving, critical thinking, and collaboration. Using a mixed-method research design quantitative data were collected to identify achievement levels of the target population on the assumption that all students, regardless of ability, will achieve greater mastery of science content in IWB classrooms. Qualitative data were collected through observations, interviews, videotapes, and a survey to identify how IWBs lead to increased achievement in third grade classrooms and to develop a record of teachers' professional practices, and students' measures of engagement and motivation. Comparative techniques determined whether science instruction is more effective in IWB classroom than in IWB-free classrooms. The qualitative findings concluded that, compared to science teachers who work in IWB-free settings, elementary science teachers who used IWBs incorporated more resources to accommodate learning objectives and the varied abilities and learning styles of their students. They assessed student understanding more frequently and perceived their classrooms as more collaborative and interactive. Furthermore, they displayed willingness to pursue professional development and employed different engagement strategies. Finally, teachers who used IWBs supported more instances of critical thinking and problem-solving. Quantitative findings concluded that students of all ability levels were more motivated and engaged in IWB classes. Best practices distilled included combining IWBs with handheld peripherals to maximize assessment; the determination that formal professional development is more effective than peer coaching; that effectively managing an IWB classroom is as vital as learning how to use board itself; and that IWB teachers should be able to modify resources to tailor them for the circumstances of their classroom.

Do science coaches promote inquiry-based instruction in the elementary science classroom?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wicker, Rosemary Knight

The South Carolina Mathematics and Science Coaching Initiative established a school-based science coaching model that was effective in improving instruction by increasing the level of inquiry-based instruction in elementary science classrooms. Classroom learning environment data from both teacher groups indicated considerable differences in the quality of inquiry instruction for those classrooms of teachers supported by a science coach. All essential features of inquiry were demonstrated more frequently and at a higher level of open-ended inquiry in classrooms with the support of a science coach than were demonstrated in classrooms without a science coach. However, from teacher observations and interviews, it was determined that elementary schoolteacher practice of having students evaluate conclusions and connect them to current scientific knowledge was often neglected. Teachers with support of a science coach reported changes in inquiry-based instruction that were statistically significant. This mixed ethnographic study also suggested that the Mathematics and Science Coaching Initiative Theory of Action for Instructional Improvement was an effective model when examining the work of science coaches. All components of effective school infrastructure were positively impacted by a variety of science coaching strategies intended to promote inquiry. Professional development for competent teachers, implementation of researched-based curriculum, and instructional materials support were areas highly impacted by the work of science coaches.

Teacher perceptions of usefulness of mobile learning devices in rural secondary science classrooms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tighe, Lisa

The internet and easy accessibility to a wide range of digital content has created the necessity for teachers to embrace and integrate digitial media in their curriculums. Although there is a call for digital media integration in curriculum by current learning standards, rural schools continue to have access to fewer resources due to limited budgets, potentially preventing teachers from having access to the most current technology and science instructional materials. This dissertation identifies the perceptions rural secondary science teachers have on the usefulness of mobile learning devices in the science classroom. The successes and challenges in using mobile learning devices in the secondary classroom were also explored. Throughout this research, teachers generally supported the integration of mobile devices in the classroom, while harboring some concerns relating to student distractability and the time required for integrating mobile devices in exisiting curriculum. Quantitative and qualitative data collected through surveys, interviews, and classroom observations revealed that teachers perceive that mobile devices bring benefits such as ease of communication and easy access to digitial information. However, there are perceived challenges with the ability to effectively communicate complex scientific information via mobile devices, distractibility of students, and the time required to develop effective curriculum to integrate digital media into the secondary science classroom.

Fish Bowls and Bloopers: Oral History in the Classroom. Lesson Plan.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Paul, Paula J.

1997-01-01

Describes teaching methods used to prepare students for conducting oral history interviews. Fishbowl interviews consist of a behavior-modeling exercise where the teacher interviews a guest in front of the class. Examines other instructional techniques such as role playing and paired interviewing. (MJP)

The impact of technology on the enactment of inquiry in a technology enthusiast's sixth grade science classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Waight, Noemi; Abd-El-Khalick, Fouad

2007-01-01

This study investigated the impact of the use of computer technology on the enactment of inquiry in a sixth grade science classroom. Participants were 42 students (38% female) enrolled in two sections of the classroom and taught by a technology-enthusiast instructor. Data were collected over the course of 4 months during which several inquiry activities were completed, some of which were supported with the use of technology. Non-participant observation, classroom videotaping, and semi-structured and critical-incident interviews were used to collect data. The results indicated that the technology in use worked to restrict rather than promote inquiry in the participant classroom. In the presence of computers, group activities became more structured with a focus on sharing tasks and accounting for individual responsibility, and less time was dedicated to group discourse with a marked decrease in critical, meaning-making discourse. The views and beliefs of teachers and students in relation to their specific contexts moderate the potential of technology in supporting inquiry teaching and learning and should be factored both in teacher training and attempts to integrate technology in science teaching.

"These Rights Go beyond Borders and Pieces of Paper:" Urban High School Teachers and Newcomer Immigrant Youth Engaging in Human Rights Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schiller, Juliet

2013-01-01

This qualitative study explored the ways that two ninth and tenth grade teachers and their newcomer immigrant students engaged in HRE using elements of critical pedagogy at an urban pubic high school. Research data included eight months of classroom observations and interviews with two teachers and nineteen of their students across four of their…

An Investigation of How Culture Shapes Curriculum in Early Care and Education Programs on a Native American Indian Reservation: "The Drum Is Considered the Heartbeat of the Community"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gilliard, Jennifer L.; Moore, Rita A.

2007-01-01

This article investigates how culture shapes instruction in three early care and education programs on the Flathead Indian Reservation. Interviews with eight early childhood teachers as well as classroom observations were conducted. The investigation is framed by the following research question: How does the culture of the family and community…

The Role That Socioaffective Practices Play in Third Graders' Autonomous Learning (El papel de las prácticas socioafectivas en el aprendizaje autónomo de estudiantes de tercer grado)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perdomo Toro, Jhonatan; Rico González, Ángela Milena; Huepa Salcedo, Nury Catherine

2011-01-01

In this article we describe and analyze how autonomous learning emerges in third graders' socioaffective practices as reconstructed in written narratives. Results were obtained by analyzing and reflecting on classroom observation, interviews and written narratives done by the students which let us appreciate different behaviors and reactions the…

On-Site Pedagogical Content Knowledge Development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chan, Kennedy Kam Ho; Yung, Benny Hin Wai

2015-05-01

Experiences and reflection have long been regarded as a foundation for pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) development. However, little is known about how experienced teachers develop their PCK via reflection-in-action during their moment-to-moment classroom instruction. Drawing upon data sources including classroom observations, semi-structured interviews and stimulated recall interviews based on lesson videos, this study examined instances when four experienced teachers were found to invent new instructional strategies/representations on the spot during the lesson (referred to as on-site PCK development) in their first attempts at teaching a new topic. The study documented the moment-to-moment experiences of the teachers, including their reconstructed thought processes associated with these instances of on-site PCK development. An explanatory model of a three-step process comprising a stimulus, an integration process and a response was advanced to account for the on-site PCK development observed among the teachers. Three categories of stimulus that triggered on-site PCK development were identified. Factors influencing the integration process and, hence, the resulting response, included teachers' subject matter knowledge of the new topic, their general pedagogical knowledge and their knowledge of student learning difficulties/prior knowledge related to the new topic. Implications for teacher professional development in terms of how to enhance teachers' on-site PCK development are discussed.

Personal practical theories, self-identity, and astronomy teachers' interactive decision making

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Richmond, Marvin Elliot

2005-12-01

Research has suggested that beliefs play a major role in selecting and defining teaching tasks and organizing the knowledge needed to perform those tasks. Teachers, consciously or unconsciously, depend on beliefs because they work in ill-structured domains where traditional problem solving techniques and academic knowledge do not work as well. The goal of this project was to establish, if possible, a causal link between teacher beliefs and interactive decision making through empirical, qualitative research. The hypothesis was, that when faced with those sorts of situations, the participants would fall back on belief systems that did not necessarily have a rational basis. The research focused on astronomy teachers in community colleges. Since most science reform efforts are directed toward primary and secondary schools, community college science teaching remains a neglected area of study. Yet community colleges are predicted to play an increasingly important role in higher education in the near future. For many students, community college science classes may represent their last encounter with formal, academic, science programs. The three participants were interviewed and observed in the classroom over an extended period. Initial interviews were conducted with each participant to capture stated beliefs. After the extensive classroom observations, stimulated recall interviews were held with each participant viewing short, edited segments of the classroom videotapes. No direct causal link between beliefs (in the conventional sense of the word) and participant decision making is apparent from this empirical research. However, the construct of personal practical theories, which includes beliefs as one component, shows promise as a significant determining factor in interactive decision making. Themes have been developed that represent each participant's personal practical theories. The strongest theme, applicable to all participants, is based on the notion of extemporaneous lessons within a structured context of an implied contract between the students and the teachers. The terms of this implied contract are found in the administrative constraints, the systemic constraints, the personal restraints of the participant teachers, and the personal restraints of the students. The name assigned to this unifying theme is "planned spontaneity." While sounding like an oxymoron, it concisely suggests the kind of flexibility required of all teachers who are faced with an ever shifting classroom environment.

Teachers' Perceptions of Effective Classroom Management within an Inner-City Middle School.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Turner, Catana L.

This study was undertaken to obtain descriptive information about teachers' perceptions of effective classroom management within an inner-city middle school. Thirteen teachers in one such school in Tennessee were interviewed about their classroom management behaviors. Teachers appeared to have an elaborate system of beliefs related to the themes…

Exploring How African American Faculty Cope with Classroom Racial Stressors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pittman, Chavella T.

2010-01-01

This study was an examination of how African American faculty discussed their coping with racially stressful classrooms. Despite aims for racial equality in higher education, the classroom has been a significant site of racial stressors for African American facility. Analysis of interviews with 16 (8 women, 8 men) African American faculty at a…

Our Language: (Re)Imagining Communities in Ukrainian Language Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Friedman, Debra A.

2016-01-01

Drawing upon video recordings from two fifth-grade Ukrainian classrooms and interviews with children four years later, this paper examines these classrooms as sites for socializing learners into an "imagined community" of Ukrainian speakers, the extent to which children took up identities as members of this community, and the potential…

International Teaching Assistants' Experiences in the U.S. Classrooms: Implications for Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ashavskaya, Ekaterina

2015-01-01

Recently, a number of studies have examined the lived experiences of the international teaching assistants (ITAs) in the U.S. classrooms. The findings show that the ITAs face many challenges such as classroom management, instructional, linguistic, cultural and social challenges. Following this line of research, this interview-based study examined…

Teachers' Perceptions of Using Movement in the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Benes, Sarah; Finn, Kevin E.; Sullivan, Eileen C.; Yan, Zi

2016-01-01

A mixed-methods design was employed to explore classroom teachers' perceptions of using movement in the classroom. Questions on a written survey and in interviews were focused on gaining understandings of teachers' knowledge of the connections between movement and learning, their perceptions about movement as a teaching strategy, and the role of…

Classroom Utilization. AIR 1986 Annual Forum Paper.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gracie, Larry W.

The use of an index to match classes and classroom space was assessed. The index initiates the use of several variables controlling utilization: number of hours that rooms are scheduled per week, average percentage of occupancy per room, and amount of area per station per room. Interviews with deans covered current classroom assignment…

Collaborative Data-Driven Decision Making: A Qualitative Study of the Lived Experiences of Primary Grade Classroom Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ralston, Christine R.

2012-01-01

The purpose of this qualitative study was to describe the lived experiences of primary classroom teachers participating in collaborative data-driven decision making. Hermeneutic phenomenology served as the theoretical framework. Data were collected by conducting interviews with thirteen classroom teachers who taught in grades kindergarten through…

Toward Intentional, Reflective, and Assimilative Classroom Practices with Students with FASD

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Poth, Cheryl; Pei, Jacqueline; Job, Jenelle M.; Wyper, Katherine

2014-01-01

The value of research-informed classroom practices is well recognized and thus this qualitative study was designed to explore, from multiple perspectives, the experiences and influences of classroom practices for students with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD). The inductive analysis of 11 focus groups and three interviews involving 60…

The Round-Robin Mock Interview: Maximum Learning in Minimum Time

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marks, Melanie; O'Connor, Abigail H.

2006-01-01

Interview skills is critical to a job seeker's success in obtaining employment. However, learning interview skills takes time. This article offers an activity for providing students with interview practice while sacrificing only a single classroom period. The authors begin by reviewing relevant literature. Then, they outline the process of…

Visual, Critical, and Scientific Thinking Dispositions in a 3rd Grade Science Classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Foss, Stacy

Many American students leave school without the required 21st century critical thinking skills. This qualitative case study, based on the theoretical concepts of Facione, Arheim, and Vygotsky, explored the development of thinking dispositions through the arts in science on the development of scientific thinking skills when used as a conceptual thinking routine in a rural 3rd grade classroom. Research questions examined the disposition to think critically through the arts in science and focused on the perceptions and experiences of 25 students with the Visual Thinking Strategy (VTS) process. Data were collected from classroom observations (n = 10), student interviews (n = 25), teacher interviews ( n = 1), a focus group discussion (n = 3), and artifacts of student work (n = 25); these data included perceptions of VTS, school culture, and classroom characteristics. An inductive analysis of qualitative data resulted in several emergent themes regarding disposition development and students generating questions while increasing affective motivation. The most prevalent dispositions were open-mindedness, the truth-seeking disposition, the analytical disposition, and the systematicity disposition. The findings about the teachers indicated that VTS questions in science supported "gradual release of responsibility", the internalization of process skills and vocabulary, and argumentation. This case study offers descriptive research that links visual arts inquiry and the development of critical thinking dispositions in science at the elementary level. A science curriculum could be developed, that emphasizes the development of thinking dispositions through the arts in science, which in turn, could impact the professional development of teachers and learning outcomes for students.

Use of the Outdoor Classroom and Nature-Study to Support Science and Literacy Learning: A Narrative Case Study of a Third-Grade Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eick, Charles J.

2012-01-01

A case study of an exemplary third grade teacher's use of the outdoor classroom for meeting both state science and language arts standards is described. Data from the researcher's field journal, teacher lesson plans, and teacher interviews document how this teacher used nature-study to bridge outdoor classroom experiences with the state science…

Defining Success in Adult Basic Education Settings: Multiple Stakeholders, Multiple Perspectives

PubMed Central

Tighe, Elizabeth L.; Barnes, Adrienne E.; Connor, Carol M.; Steadman, Sharilyn C.

2015-01-01

This study employed quantitative and qualitative research approaches to investigate what constitutes “success” in Adult Basic Education (ABE) programs from the perspectives of multiple educational stakeholders: the state funding agency, the teachers, and the students. Success was defined in multiple ways. In the quantitative section of the study, we computed classroom value-added scores (used as a metric of the state’s definition of success) to identify more and less effective ABE classrooms in two Florida counties. In the qualitative section of the study, we observed and conducted interviews with teachers and students in the selected classrooms to investigate how these stakeholders defined success in ABE. Iterative consideration of the qualitative data revealed three principal markers of success: (a) instructional strategies and teacher-student interactions; (b) views on standardized testing; and (c) student motivational factors. In general, classrooms with higher value-added scores were characterized by multiple instructional approaches, positive and collaborative teacher-student interactions, and students engaging in goal setting and citing motivational factors such as family and personal fulfillment. The implications for ABE programs are discussed. PMID:26279590

Exploring the positional identities of high school science teachers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blackwell, Edith Lavonne

The identity of the teacher has been determined to influence classroom practices. Positional identity is defined as one's perception of self relative to others. This qualitative research study investigates the positional identity of five high school science teachers of different ethnicities and how their positional identities influence their classroom practices. Positional identity is thought to be determined by one's perception of how one's race, ethnicity, gender, age, religion and socioeconomic status position one relative to others. The methods of data collection included classroom observations, structured and semi-structured interviews, book club meetings, teacher journals, and researcher journals, demographic and online questionnaires. The teachers that overcame stereotypes based on race/ethnicity, gender and socioeconomic status felt empowered in their positional identities and were able to empower their students. The data also identified those teachers that struggle the most with finding their power within their positional identities were the immigrants that were not able to merge their personal identities within the pre-determined social positions they encountered in this society. The empowerment or powerlessness of the science teachers' positional identities impacted instruction and practices within the science classroom.

Finding the Little 'c' in Physics: A Multiple Case Study Examining the Development of Creative Activities in the Physics Classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wheeler, Christopher

This study focused on how physics teachers develop and implement activities that promote creative thinking strategies in the standards based physics classroom. A particular focus was placed on every day or little "c", creativity, which can be taught in the high school classroom. The study utilized a multiple case study design, which allows for in-depth study in a variety of settings. Four participants from various high schools were identified utilizing administrator recommendations. Data were then collected via interviews, observations, and documents. The data were coded and analyzed for emerging themes. The themes were then merged to determine findings to the stated research questions. The research demonstrated the importance of modifying activities for student interest and understanding through effective use of scientific inquiry. The past experiences and professional development of the participants served as a vital piece to the development of their educational pedagogy especially concerning inquiry and questioning strategies. It was also established that an unstructured, positive classroom environment is a vital aspect of teaching while supporting creative thinking skills.

An Investigation of Science Teaching Practices in Indonesian Rural Secondary Schools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wahyudi; Treagust, David F.

2004-08-01

This study reports on teaching practices in science classrooms of Indonesian lower secondary schools in rural areas. Using six schools from three districts in the province of Kalimantan Selatan as the sample, this study found that most teaching practices in science classrooms in rural schools were teacher-centred with students copying notes. However, the study also found unique teaching practices of an exemplary science teacher whose teaching style can be described as both student-centred and teacher-centred, with students encouraged to be active learners. Four features of exemplary teaching practices were identified: The teacher managed the classroom effectively; used a variety of questioning techniques; employed various teaching approaches instead of traditional methods; and created a favourable learning environment. Data from classroom observations, interviews with teachers, and students responses to a questionnaire were used to compare the exemplary teacher and his colleagues. This study identified internal factors that may affect teaching practices such as a teachers content knowledge and beliefs about teaching. Compared to the other teachers, the exemplary teacher possessed more content knowledge and had a relatively stronger belief in his ability to teach.

How best to measure implementation of school health curricula: a comparison of three measures.

PubMed

Resnicow, K; Davis, M; Smith, M; Lazarus-Yaroch, A; Baranowski, T; Baranowski, J; Doyle, C; Wang, D T

1998-06-01

The impact of school health education programs is often attenuated by inadequate teacher implementation. Using data from a school-based nutrition education program delivered in a sample of fifth graders, this study examines the discriminant and predictive validity of three measures of curriculum implementation: class-room observation of fidelity, and two measures of completeness, teacher self-report questionnaire and post-implementation interview. A fourth measure, obtained during teacher observations, that assessed student and teacher interaction and student receptivity to the curriculum (labeled Rapport) was also obtained. Predictive validity was determined by examining the association of implementation measures with three study outcomes; health knowledge, asking behaviors related to fruit and vegetables, and fruit and vegetable intake, assessed by 7-day diary. Of the 37 teachers observed, 21 were observed for two sessions and 16 were observed once. Implementation measures were moderately correlated, an indication of discriminant validity. Predictive validity analyses indicated that the observed fidelity, Rapport and interview measures were significantly correlated with post-test student knowledge. The association between health knowledge and observed fidelity (based on dual observation only), Rapport and interview measures remained significant after adjustment for pre-test knowledge values. None of the implementation variables were significantly associated with student fruit and vegetable intake or asking behaviors controlling for pre-test values. These results indicate that the teacher self-report questionnaire was not a valid measure of implementation completeness in this study. Post-implementation completeness interviews and dual observations of fidelity and Rapport appear to be more valid, and largely independent methods of implementation assessment.

A qualitative study of the instructional behaviors and practices of a dyad of educators in self-contained and inclusive co-taught secondary biology classrooms during a nine-week science instruction grading period

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hardy, Shanon D.

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) (1997) mandates that students with disabilities have access to the general education curriculum. School districts have developed a variety of service delivery models to provide challenging educational experiences for all students. Co-teaching or collaborative teaching is the most widely used of the different service delivery models. While the philosophy of inclusion is widely accepted, the efficacy of the various inclusion models has recently been the focus of educational research. Researchers have questioned whether the presence of a special educator in the general education classroom has resulted in students with high incidence disabilities receiving specialized instruction. A qualitative study was designed to examine the instructional behaviors and practices exhibited and used by a dyad of educators in self-contained learning disabilities and inclusive co-taught secondary Biology classrooms during a nine-week science instruction grading period. In addition to utilizing interviews, observations, and classroom observation scales to answer the research questions, supporting student data (time-sampling measurement/opportunity to learn and student grades) were collected. The study concluded that the presence of a special educator in a co-taught classroom: (1) did contribute to the creation of a new learning environment, and notable changes in the instructional behaviors and practices of a general educator; (2) did contribute to limited specialized instruction for students with disabilities in the co-taught classrooms and embedded (not overt) special education practices related to the planning and decision-making of the educators; (3) did contribute to the creation of a successful co-teaching partnership including the use of effective teaching behaviors; and (4) did impact success for some of the students with disabilities in the co-taught classrooms; but (5) did not ensure the continuation of some of the new instructional behaviors and practices in the general education classroom if the collaboration ended.

The Influence of Classic Chinese Philosophy of Confucianism, Taoism and Legalism on Classroom Discipline in Hong Kong Junior Secondary Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hue, Ming-Tak

2007-01-01

Discipline is a crucial aspect of teachers' and students' classroom lives. Hong Kong secondary teachers, as elsewhere, are concerned with students' misbehaviour. This article examines teachers' constructs of classroom discipline and strategies adopted for behaviour management. Qualitative data were collected by interviews and classroom…

Japanese Family and Consumer Sciences Teachers' Lived Experiences: Self-Disclosure in the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Katadae, Ayako

2008-01-01

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand the lived experiences of Japanese family and consumer sciences teachers' self-disclosure in the classroom. Twelve secondary school teachers were interviewed, beginning with this primary question, "Think about a specific time and space when you self-disclosed in the classroom. Would you…

Young African American Children Constructing Academic and Disciplinary Identities in an Urban Science Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kane, Justine M.

2012-01-01

In this paper, I offer a framework for exploring the academic and disciplinary identities young African American children construct in urban science classrooms. Using interviews, fieldnotes, and videotapes of classroom lessons, I juxtapose the ways in which two children tell about their experiences in school and science with their performances of…

Technology, Learning, and the Classroom: Longitudinal Evaluation of a Faculty Development Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kaminski, Karen; Bolliger, Doris

2012-01-01

Technology, Learning, and the Classroom, a workshop designed to jump-start faculty's use of instructional technology in face-to-face classrooms, was offered as a week-long intensive workshop and once-a-week session over a semester. Faculty were interviewed five years after participation to determine the longitudinal effects, differences in opinion…

Inclusion for Students with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome: Classroom Teachers Talk about Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dybdahl, Claudia S.; Ryan, Susan

2009-01-01

The authors aimed to investigate the perceptions and experiences of regular education classroom teachers whose students included at least 1 child diagnosed with fetal alcohol spectrum (FAS) disorders. The authors collected data over a 3-year period in 3 school districts in the Pacific Northwest. Data included interviews with classroom teachers,…

The Influence of Informal Science Education Experiences on the Development of Two Beginning Teachers' Science Classroom Teaching Identity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Katz, Phyllis; McGinnis, J. Randy; Riedinger, Kelly; Marbach-Ad, Gili; Dai, Amy

2013-01-01

In case studies of two first-year elementary classroom teachers, we explored the influence of informal science education (ISE) they experienced in their teacher education program. Our theoretical lens was identity development, delimited to classroom science teaching. We used complementary data collection methods and analysis, including interviews,…

Observation and assessment of faculty development learning outcomes.

PubMed

Behar-Horenstein, Linda S; Childs, Gail Schneider; Graff, Randy A

2010-11-01

Prior research has found that participation in course offerings provides a means of professional development and results in changes to faculty beliefs and instructional practices. However, as with most professional development initiatives in education, little is known about the sustainability of these training efforts. The research question that guided this study was the following: Do professional development efforts in teaching result in observed learning outcomes among faculty members? In this study, teaching observations served as the primary data source. Twelve faculty members (six in the College of Dentistry and six in the College of Health and Human Performance) who completed two six-week teaching seminars in fall 2006 and spring 2007 or spring 2008 and summer 2008 were asked to participate in a classroom observation and an interview lasting no longer than forty-five minutes. Six dental faculty members and three faculty members from the College of Health and Human Performance agreed to participate in the study. Three standardized reviewers conducted these classroom observations during fall 2008, spring 2009, and summer 2009. An active teaching rubric was used to evaluate the class transcripts. The findings revealed that participants somewhat frequently to frequently used questions that were open-ended or checked for comprehension. Seven of nine instructors made extensive efforts to engage the students interactively throughout the teaching session. Six of the participants infused the description of actual or hypothetical cases to illustrate the connections between teaching and patient care, while six utilized reflective practices. Findings from the interviews corroborated the observations. Overall, the findings showed that participants demonstrated the integration of those strategies that were taught during the seminars, which were consistent with teaching critical thinking skills and showed that the learning acquired during professional development initiatives was sustained.

Objective and subjective evaluation of the acoustic comfort in classrooms.

PubMed

Zannin, Paulo Henrique Trombetta; Marcon, Carolina Reich

2007-09-01

The acoustic comfort of classrooms in a Brazilian public school has been evaluated through interviews with 62 teachers and 464 pupils, measurements of background noise, reverberation time, and sound insulation. Acoustic measurements have revealed the poor acoustic quality of the classrooms. Results have shown that teachers and pupils consider the noise generated and the voice of the teacher in neighboring classrooms as the main sources of annoyance inside the classroom. Acoustic simulations resulted in the suggestion of placement of perforated plywood on the ceiling, for reduction in reverberation time and increase in the acoustic comfort of the classrooms.

Mapping Science in Discourse-based Inquiry Classrooms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yeneayhu, Demeke Gesesse

Abstract The purpose of this study was to investigate how discourse-based inquiry science lessons provided opportunities for students to develop a network of semantic relations among core ideas and concepts in science. It was a naturalistic inquiry classroom lessons observation study on three science teachers--- a middle school science teacher and two high school physics teachers in an urban school district located in the Western New York region. Discourse and thematic analysis drawn from the theory of Systemic Functional Linguistics were utilized as guiding framework and analysis tools. Analysis of the pre-observation and post-observation interviews of the participant teachers revealed that all of the three teachers participated in at least one inquiry-based science teaching teacher professional development program and they all thought their classroom teaching practice was inquiry-based. Analysis of their classroom lesson videos that each participant teacher taught on a specific science topic revealed that the middle school teacher was found to be a traditional teacher-dominated classroom whereas the two high school physics teachers' classroom teaching approach was found to be discourse-based inquiry. One of the physics teachers who taught on a topic of Magnetic Interaction used relatively structured and guided-inquiry classroom investigations. The other physics teacher who taught on a topic of Color Mixing utilized open-ended classroom investigations where the students planned and executed the series of classroom science investigations with minimal guidance from the teacher. The traditional teacher-based classroom communicative pattern was found to be dominated by Triadic Dialogue and most of the science thematics were jointly developed by the teacher and the students, but the students' role was limited to providing responses to the teacher's series questions. In the guided-inquiry classroom, the common communicative pattern was found to be True Dialogue and most of the science thematic patterns in the lessons were not only developed by the students but also resemble the standard thematics. Similarly, in the open-ended inquiry classroom, True Dialogue and Cross-discussion were the two most common communicative patterns and students did most of the science thematic patterns in the lessons but most of the student thematics were commonsense than resembling the standard thematics on the topic. This research showed that if teachers are to help students participate in classroom discourse that would enable them meaningfully connects core ideas and concepts in science, teachers could use various discourse tools and pedagogic resources that could fit into their particular classroom realities and contexts. This study demonstrated that when given the opportunity, students in challenging contexts such in typical inner city schools are able to engage in scientific processes and develop nuanced understandings of scientific phenomena.

"In Hispanic Culture, the Children Are the Jewels of the Family": An Investigation of Home and Community Culture in a Bilingual Early Care and Education Center Serving Migrant and Seasonal Farm Worker Families

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gilliard, Jennifer L.; Moore, Rita A.; Lemieux, Jeanette J.

2007-01-01

This article investigates how culture shapes instruction in a bilingual early care and education program serving migrant and seasonal farm worker families in rural Wyoming. Interviews with eight early childhood teachers as well as classroom observations were conducted. The investigation is framed around the following research question: How does…

The kids got game: Computer/video games, gender and learning outcomes in science classrooms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anderson, Janice Lyn

In recent years educators have begun to explore how to purposively design computer/video games to support student learning. This interest in video games has arisen in part because educational video games appear to have the potential to improve student motivation and interest in technology, and engage students in learning through the use of a familiar medium (Squire, 2005; Shaffer, 2006; Gee, 2005). The purpose of this dissertation research is to specifically address the issue of student learning through the use of educational computer/video games. Using the Quest Atlantis computer game, this study involved a mixed model research strategy that allowed for both broad understandings of classroom practices and specific analysis of outcomes through the themes that emerged from the case studies of the gendered groups using the game. Specifically, this study examined how fifth-grade students learning about science concepts, such as water quality and ecosystems, unfolds over time as they participate in the Quest Atlantis computer game. Data sources included classroom observations and video, pre- and post-written assessments, pre- and post- student content interviews, student field notebooks, field reports and the field notes of the researcher. To make sense of how students learning unfolded, video was analyzed using a framework of interaction analysis and small group interactions (Jordan & Henderson, 1995; Webb, 1995). These coded units were then examined with respect to student artifacts and assessments and patterns of learning trajectories analyzed. The analysis revealed that overall, student learning outcomes improved from pre- to post-assessments for all students. While there were no observable gendered differences with respect to the test scores and content interviews, there were gendered differences with respect to game play. Implications for game design, use of external scaffolds, games as tools for learning and gendered findings are discussed.

Differentiating Science Instruction: Secondary science teachers' practices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maeng, Jennifer L.; Bell, Randy L.

2015-09-01

This descriptive study investigated the implementation practices of secondary science teachers who differentiate instruction. Participants included seven high school science teachers purposefully selected from four different schools located in a mid-Atlantic state. Purposeful selection ensured participants included differentiated instruction (DI) in their lesson implementation. Data included semi-structured interviews and field notes from a minimum of four classroom observations, selected to capture the variety of differentiation strategies employed. These data were analyzed using a constant-comparative approach. Each classroom observation was scored using the validated Differentiated Instruction Implementation Matrix-Modified, which captured both the extent to which critical indicators of DI were present in teachers' instruction and the performance levels at which they engaged in these components of DI. Results indicated participants implemented a variety of differentiation strategies in their classrooms with varying proficiency. Evidence suggested all participants used instructional modifications that required little advance preparation to accommodate differences in students' interests and learning profile. Four of the seven participants implemented more complex instructional strategies that required substantial advance preparation by the teacher. Most significantly, this study provides practical strategies for in-service science teachers beginning to differentiate instruction and recommendations for professional development and preservice science teacher education.

The effects of Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies Preschool Program on teacher-children relationships and children's social competence in Turkey.

PubMed

Bilir Seyhan, Gamze; Ocak Karabay, Sakire; Arda Tuncdemir, Tugce B; Greenberg, Mark T; Domitrovich, Celene

2017-05-02

This quasi-experimental study examined the effects of the Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies (PATHS) Preschool Program on the outcomes of children's social-emotional competence, perceived relationships between teacher and children and teachers' ability to create a positive classroom atmosphere. Two hundred and eighty five children (48-72 months) and teachers in Izmir participated in the intervention, and 280 children (48-72 months) and teachers participated as comparison group. Intervention teachers implemented PATHS in their classrooms. For data triangulation, multiple sources of data were collected in the study. Classrooms were observed using two different scales. Teacher rated students using another two different scales. Children were assessed with an interview to evaluate their perceptions of relationships. Intervention group teachers reported greater improvement of children's social-emotional skills, interpersonal relationship skills and emotion regulation. Furthermore, when observed intervention group children showed higher levels of pro-social behaviour, increased levels of compliance, better problem solving skills and more positive feelings. Intervention group children also described their relationships with their teachers as significantly more positively. Finally, intervention group teachers perceived more dependency in their relationships with children. © 2017 International Union of Psychological Science.

Becoming Galileo in the Classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cavicchi, Elizabeth

2011-04-01

Galileo's contributions are so familiar as to be taken for granted, obscuring the exploratory process by which his discoveries arose. The wonder that Galileo experienced comes alive for undergraduates and teachers that I teach, when they find themselves taking Galileo's role by means of their own explorations. These classroom journeys include: sighting through picture frames to understand perspective, watching the night sky, experimenting with lenses and motion, and responding to Galileo's story. In teaching, I use critical exploration, the research pedagogy developed by Eleanor Duckworth that arose historically from both the clinical interviewing of Jean Piaget and B"arbel Inhelder and the Elementary Science Study of the 1960s. During critical explorations, the teacher supports students' investigations by posing provocative experiences while interactively following students' emergent understandings. In the context of Galileo, students learned to observe carefully, trust their observations, notice things they had never noticed before, and extend their understanding in the midst of pervasive confusion. Personal investment moved students to question assumptions that they had never critically evaluated. By becoming Galileo in today's classroom, we found the ordinary world no less intriguing and unsettling to explore, as the historical world of protagonists in Galileo's Dialogue.

Asthma Management in New York City Schools: a Classroom Teacher Perspective

PubMed Central

Cain, Agnieszka; Reznik, Marina

2016-01-01

Objective Classroom teachers play an important role in facilitating asthma management in school but little is known about their perspectives around asthma management. We examined the perspectives of classroom teachers around barriers to school asthma management. Methods We conducted key informant interviews with 21 inner-city classroom teachers from 3rd to 5th grades in 10 Bronx, New York elementary schools. Sampling continued until thematic saturation was reached. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and independently coded for common themes. We used thematic and content review to analyze interview data. Results Seven themes representing teachers’ perspectives on in-school asthma management emerged: (1) the problematic process of identifying students with asthma; (2) poor familiarity with the city health department’s asthma initiative and poor general knowledge of school policies on asthma management (3) lack of competency in managing an acute asthma attack in the classroom and poor recognition of symptoms of an asthma attack; (4) lack of confidence in dealing with a hypothetical asthma attack in the classroom; (5) lack of quick access to asthma medication in school; (6) limited communication between school staff; and (7) enthusiasm about learning more about asthma management. Conclusions Our results revealed several barriers contributing to suboptimal in-school asthma management: ineffective ways of identifying students with asthma, lack of teacher knowledge of guidelines on asthma management, lack of comfort in managing students’ asthma, inadequate access to asthma medication in school, and limited communication between school staff. These issues should be considered in the design of interventions to improve in-school asthma management. PMID:27031532

The perception of science teachers on the role of student relationships in the classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mattison, Cheryl Ann

With the increased accountability of educators comes the responsibility of the entire educational community to find ways in which we can help our students succeed in the classroom. In addition, it is important to discover what it takes to keep those students in school Many science teachers enter the profession unprepared to handle the regular classroom routine. Classroom management, grading, lesson planning, setting up labs, and the myriad of other obligations, can leave teachers overwhelmed and sometimes can get in the way of actually helping students be successful. This study investigated how science teachers viewed the importance of developing strong teacher/student relationships to the increase of student success in a science classroom. I attempted to answer 4 major questions: · How do science teachers in a select high school community view the role of interactive relationships in their classrooms and how that might impact their students? · How do science teachers in a select high school community believe they establish successful interactive relationships with their students? · What do science teachers in a select high school community believe are some of the outcomes of those relationships? · What do science teachers suggest to increase the teacher's ability to form good relationships with their students? A qualitative research method was used including observations, interviews and group discussions of 5 high school science teachers in a small urban school.

Conceptions of Effective Teaching and Perceived Use of Computer Technologies in Active Learning Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gebre, Engida; Saroyan, Alenoush; Aulls, Mark W.

2015-01-01

This paper examined professors' conceptions of effective teaching in the context of a course they were teaching in active learning classrooms and how the conceptions related to the perceived role and use of computers in their teaching. We interviewed 13 professors who were teaching in active learning classrooms in winter 2011 in a large research…

Teachers' Perspectives and Experiences of the Contexts of Social Inclusion within Elementary School Classrooms in Canada and China

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dyson, Lily

2014-01-01

This study examined the contexts of social inclusion within elementary school classrooms in Canada and China. Based on interviews, classroom teachers in two metropolitan cities in Canada and China reported their perspectives and experiences with regard to: (a) the state of social inclusion in general; (b) places where social inclusion took place…

Technology and science in classroom and interview talk with Swiss lower secondary school students: a Marxist sociological approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roth, Wolff-Michael

2013-06-01

In much of science education research, the content of talk tends to be attributed to the persons who produce the sound-words in a speech situation. A radically different, sociological perspective on language-in-use grounded in Marxism derives from the work of L. S. Vygotsky and the members of the circle around M. M. Bakhtin. Accordingly, each word belongs to speaker and recipient simultaneously. It represents collective consciousness and, therefore, shared ideology, which can no longer be attributed to the individual. The purpose of this study is to develop a sociological perspective on language in science education, a perspective in which language continuously changes. I articulate this position in the context of classroom and interview talk with 14-year-old Swiss non-academically streamed lower secondary students about technology and science. In this context, science classrooms and interviews are shown to be microcosms of Swiss (German) culture and society reproduced in and through the situated talk about science and technology.

Veiled chameleons: Analyzing urban science teachers' epistemological and ontological beliefs on "caring" for urban students' science literacy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barrett, Channa Nicole

The present study investigated teachers' epistemological and ontological beliefs and how those beliefs influence "caring" for urban students' science literacy. The grounded theory research involved six teacher participants and 18 student participants and collected the data using the following methods: Teacher and student interviews and six weeks of classroom observations. Using critical race theory (CRT) as a lens, the analysis of the data occurred simultaneously with the data collection. The findings revealed seven categories and 16 themes, which emerged from the analysis on "caring" for students' science literacy. From the CRT model tested in the study, the data illustrated a plethora of evidence relating to the themes colorblindness, interest convergence, and microaggressions. A negative effect of teachers who practiced colorblindness in the classroom revealed an assignment of subordinate positions, meaning the teacher assumed the role of the ultimate-knowledge holder in the classroom and the students assumed an academic co-dependency role in the classroom. Such an environment, allowed the teachers to become epistemically privileged while the students became epistemically oppressed. Implications for teaching suggest that there are different "shades" of caring for students' science literacy and that teachers should acknowledge the vast critical race-gendered epistemologies that students bring into the classroom in an effort to move towards a just epistemic environment.

Reading Ella: using literary patients to enhance nursing students' reflective thinking in the classroom.

PubMed

Pohlman, Shawn

2013-11-23

This action research study was designed to explore, in-depth, how 70 senior nursing students experienced an assignment that involved reading and reflecting on a short story, Ella, and the educator's experience during the process. Four sources of data were collected: student reflections, field notes, a classroom process recording by an expert educator/observer, and a focus group interview. Four themes emerged: (1) student reflections revealed their inner, often hidden landscapes; (2) Ella prompted clarification of the past and/or triggered future projective thinking; (3) Ella clarified difficult-to-teach concepts; and (4) the interface between students' thoughts and teacher responses provided a platform of connectivity. I propose that reading well-written stories may enhance students' clinical reasoning skills and ethical comportment within the confines of a classroom. In addition, when students are introduced to literary patients like Ella, they can dwell with the characters at a more peaceful pace which, in itself, may encourage reflectivity.

An exploratory study of the influence of national and state standards on middle school science teachers' classroom assessment practices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McWaters, Kathy Jean

2001-07-01

Classroom assessment practices of middle school science teachers were identified and the influence of national and state science standards on these practices was examined. In Phase I of this study a mail questionnaire was sent to 450 middle school (grades 5,6,7 and 8) science teachers in 17 parishes in Louisiana to obtain information about their classroom assessment practices. In Phase II, nine middle school teachers in eight departmentalized classrooms, two classes at each grade, participated in a qualitative study. Data were collected through questionnaires, classroom observations, interviews and document analysis. Data analysis revealed three major categories of classroom assessment targets: (a) student achievement, (b) student attitudes and, (c) student products. Results indicated that most teachers are using different assessment methods when assessing different achievement targets, as recommended by science reform documents. It was also determined that many teachers are using appropriate methods to assess student learning. While teachers reported that students spend an inordinate amount of time engaged in assessment activities, classroom observations suggested that the activities were not always written tests or graded activities. Another key finding is that there is a disconnect between the quality of teaching and the quality of assessment. Teachers who teach the material recommended by science reform documents and use recommended instructional strategies were observed to stop teaching and engage students in a "test rehearsal" geared towards rote memorization of factual information. Data suggest that the national and state science content standards are influencing the content and the format of teacher-made tests. Teachers' reported using the standards during assessment construction or selection in a wide variety of ways. The most direct use of the standards reported was to select content, format and cognitive level for test items. A more circumspect approach used by teachers was to use the standards to write lesson plans and objectives and then to plan assessments based on these teacher-constructed objectives. Questionnaire data indicated that the three factors having the most influence on teachers' selection or construction of a particular type of assessment were: (a) how students learn, (b) alignment with state/district standards, and (c) purpose for assessment.

Investigating the role of educative curriculum materials in supporting teacher enactment of a field-based urban ecology investigation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Houle, Meredith

2008-10-01

This multiple case study examined how three urban science teachers used curriculum materials designed educatively. Educative curriculum materials have been suggested as one way to support science teacher learning, particularly around new innovations and new pedagogies and to support teachers in evaluating and modifying materials to meet the needs of their students (Davis & Krajcik, 2005). While not a substitute for professional development, educative curriculum materials may provide an opportunity to support teachers' enactment and learning in the classroom context (Davis & Krajcik, 2005; Remillard, 2005; Schneider & Krajcik, 2002). However, little work has examined how science teachers interact with written curriculum materials to design classroom instruction. Grounded in sociocultural analysis, this study takes the theoretical stance that teachers and curriculum materials are engaged in a dynamic and participatory relationship from which the planned and enacted curriculum emerges (Remillard, 2005). Teaching is therefore a design activity where teachers rely on their personal resources and the curricular resources to construct and shape their students' learning experiences (Brown, 2002). Specifically this study examines how teacher beliefs influence their reading and use of curriculum and how educative features in the written curriculum inform teachers' pedagogical decisions. Data sources included classroom observation and video, teacher interviews, and classroom artifacts. To make sense how teachers' make curricular decisions, video were analyzed using Brown's (2002) Pedagogical Design for Enactment Framework. These coded units were examined in light of the teacher interviews, classroom notes and artifacts to examine how teachers' beliefs influenced these decisions. Data sources were then reexamined for evidence of teachers' use of specific educative features. My analyses revealed that teachers' beliefs about curriculum influenced the degree to which teachers relied on their own personal resources or the curricular resources in designing the taught curriculum. Teacher experience was also found to influence the degree to which teachers relied on their personal resources. Implications for teacher learning, professional development and curriculum development are discussed.

The Oral History Curriculum Issue: A Step toward Quality Schools.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Phillips, Jerry

Sixty-five students in an undergraduate reading class wrote narratives on literacy life experiences from oral history tapes collected from interviews. Students interviewed middle and high school-level reluctant readers. In classroom workshops, the college students brainstormed about how to conduct the interviews and write the narratives. In later…

Secretarial Administraton: The Interviewing Process.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nemesh, Anna

1979-01-01

Suggests classroom techniques to prepare business students for employment interviews and gives information on lawful and unlawful employment interview inquiries, as well as some fair employment legal requirements of the Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1974, Civil Rights Act of 1964, Equal Pay Act of 1963, and Rehabilitation Act of 1973. (MF)

The Flipped Classroom: Primary and Secondary Teachers' Views on an Educational Movement in Schools in Sweden Today

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hultén, Magnus; Larsson, Bo

2018-01-01

The aim of this study is to contribute to an increased understanding of the flipped classroom movement. A total of 7 teachers working in school years 4-9 and who both actively flipped their classrooms and had been early adopters in this movement were interviewed. Two research questions were posed: "What characterizes flipped classroom…

The Same or Separate? An Exploration of Teachers' Perceptions of the Classroom Assignment of Twins in Prior to School and Kindergarten to Year Two School Settings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Laura; De Gioia, Katey

2010-01-01

This article investigates the perceptions of 12 teachers from New South Wales, Australia, regarding the classroom assignment of twins. Analysis of semi-structured interviews with each of the teachers revealed four key findings: 1) teachers' perceptions about the classroom assignment of twins vary according to their previous experience and…

The effects of a problem-based learning digital game on continuing motivation to learn science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Toprac, Paul K.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether playing a problem-based learning (PBL) computer game, Alien Rescue III, would promote continuing motivation (CM) to learn science, and to explore the possible sources of CM. Another goal was to determine whether CM and interest to learn science in the classroom were identical constructs. CM was defined as the pursuit of academic learning goals in noninstructional contexts that were initially encountered in the classroom. Alien Rescue was played for a total of 9 hours in the seventh grade of a private middle school with 44 students, total, participating. The study used a design-based research approach that attempted to triangulate quantitative and qualitative methods. A science knowledge test, and two self-report questionnaires---one measuring motivation and one measuring CM---were administered preintervention, postintervention, and follow-up. Qualitative data was also collected, including student interviews, classroom observations, written responses, and a science teacher interview. Repeated measures ANOVAs were used to determine any significant changes in scores. A multiple regression analysis was used to explore whether a model of CM could be determined using the Eccles' expectancy-value achievement motivation model. The constant comparative method was used to obtain relevant information from the qualitative data. Based on contradictory quantitative and qualitative findings, results were mixed as to whether students exhibited an increase in CM to learn space science. Students continued to freely engage Alien Rescue during the mid-class break, but this does not strictly adhere to the definition of CM. However, many students did find space science more interesting than anticipated and developed increased desire to learn more in class, if not outside of class. Results also suggest that CM and interest in learning more in class are separate but related constructs. Finally, no satisfactory model emerged from the multiple regression analysis but based on students' interviews, continuing interest to learn is influenced by all the components of Eccles' expectancy-value model. Response effects may have confounded quantitative results. Discussion includes challenges of researching in classrooms, CM, and Eccles' motivational model, and the tension between PBL and game based approaches. Future design recommendations and research directions are provided.

Teachers' conceptions of the nature of science: Analyzing the impact of a teacher enhancement program in changing attitudes and perceptions of science and scientific research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Govett, Aimee Lee

The purpose of this study was to determine the efficacy of a residential science research experience in changing participants' attitudes and understanding of the nature of science and their view of themselves as science researchers. Data from interviews, journal writings, classroom observations and two pre-post instruments were used in the evaluation plan. As participants of this study, 16 inservice teachers (K--16) attended a two-week residential institute at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) in Green Bank, West Virginia. The format of the institute featured a scientific research experience designed to arm its participants with the skills needed to model their classroom teaching after scientific research. The program included lessons on the fundamentals of radio astronomy, science talks and interactions with practicing scientists, in-depth tours of the NRAO facilities, and pedagogical instruction for implementing research in the classroom. The WVU College of Education staff and the NRAO staff stressed the importance of the nature of the research experience offered to these teachers. In the Education Sessions the WVU science education staff guided participants through the steps required to turn their experience around, in order to develop student research projects for their classrooms. The results from the Research Self Assessment instrument show significant gains for all participants in being more comfortable doing research. For the Nature of Science and Science Teaching instrument there were only three items that showed significant gains for all participants both in understanding the nature of science and in their views on implementing the Green Bank constructivist learning philosophy. The women, especially the elementary teacher group, showed the greatest change in their understanding of the nature of science as reflected in the interviews as well as in their personal journals. The seven men, who were all in the secondary field, made no significant gains in this area. Their definition of the nature of science was clearly defined as a postpositivist or contemporary view (Palinquist and Finley, 1997) from the beginning. Of the 14 teachers who were observed implementing student research projects in their classrooms, nine of the participants came close to representing the Green Bank model.

Teaching Strategies for Developing Students' Argumentation Skills About Socioscientific Issues in High School Genetics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dawson, Vaille Maree; Venville, Grady

2010-03-01

An outcome of science education is that young people have the understandings and skills to participate in public debate and make informed decisions about science issues that influence their lives. Toulmin’s argumentation skills are emerging as an effective strategy to enhance the quality of evidence based decision making in science classrooms. In this case study, an Australian science teacher participated in a one-on-one professional learning session on argumentation before explicitly teaching argumentation skills to two year 10 classes studying genetics. Over two lessons, the teacher used whole class discussion and writing frames of two socioscientific issues to teach students about argumentation. An analysis of classroom observation field notes, audiotaped lesson transcripts, writing frames and student interviews indicate that four factors promoted student argumentation. The factors are: the role of the teacher in facilitating whole class discussion; the use of writing frames; the context of the socioscientific issue; and the role of the students. It is recommended that professional learning to promote student argumentation may need to be tailored to individual teachers and that extensive classroom based research is required to determine the impact of classroom factors on students’ argumentation.

Teacher Perceptions of Multilevel Policies and the Influence on Nutrition Education in North Carolina Head Start Preschools.

PubMed

Peterson, Amanda D; Goodell, L Suzanne; Hegde, Archana; Stage, Virginia C

2017-05-01

To develop a theory that explains the process of how teachers' perception of multilevel policies may influence nutrition education (NE) teaching strategies in Head Start preschools. Semistructured telephone interviews. North Carolina Head Start preschools. Thirty-two Head Start teachers. All interviews were transcribed verbatim. Following a grounded theory approach, authors coded interview data for emergent themes. Two primary themes emerged during analysis, including teachers' policy perceptions and teacher-perceived influence of policy on NE. A theoretical model was developed to explain how teachers' perceptions of policies influenced NE (eg, teaching strategies) in the classroom. Teachers discussed multiple policy areas governing their classrooms and limiting their ability to provide meaningful and consistent NE. How teachers perceived the level of regulation in the classroom (ie, high or low) influenced the frequency with which they used specific teaching strategies. Despite federal policies supporting the provision of NE, teachers face competing priorities in the classroom (eg, school readiness vs NE) and policies may conflict with standardized NE curricula. To understand how Head Start centers develop local policies, additional research should investigate how administrators interpret federal and state policies. Copyright © 2017 Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The influence of secondary science teachers' pedagogical content knowledge, educational beliefs and perceptions of the curriculum on implementation and science reform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bonner, Portia Selene

2001-07-01

Science education reform is one of the focal points of restructuring the educational system in the United States. However, research indicates a slow change in progression towards science literacy among secondary students. One of the factors contributing to slow change is how teachers implement the curriculum in the classroom. Three constructs are believed to be influential in curriculum implementation: educational beliefs, pedagogical knowledge and perception of the curriculum. Earlier research suggests that there is a strong correlation between teachers' educational beliefs and instructional practices. These beliefs can be predictors of preferred strategies employed in the classroom. Secondly, teachers' pedagogical knowledge, that is the ability to apply theory and appropriate strategies associated with implementing and evaluating a curriculum, contributes to implementation. Thirdly, perception or how the curriculum itself is perceived also effects implementation. Each of these constructs has been examined independently, but never the interplay of the three. The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the interplay of teachers' educational beliefs, pedagogical content knowledge and perceptions of a science curriculum with respect to how these influence curriculum implementation. This was accomplished by investigating the emerging themes that evolved from classroom observations, transcripts from interview and supplementary data. Five high school biology teachers in an urban school system were observed for ten months for correspondence of teaching strategies to the curriculum. Teachers were interviewed formally and informally about their perceptions of science teaching, learning and the curriculum. Supplementary material such as lesson plans, course syllabus and notes from classroom observations were collected and analyzed. Data were transcribed and analyzed for recurring themes using a thematic matrix. A theoretical model was developed from the emerging themes and sub-themes that attempts to explain how teachers begin with an intended curriculum but digress to the actual curriculum. The results of this study were consistent with previous research on teachers' beliefs and pedagogy but also revealed a new model to explain the interaction of the three constructs. Each instructor held individual beliefs about science, science teaching and pedagogy. However, there was some commonality with teachers' beliefs, pedagogy and perceptions that impacted the implementation of the curriculum. It is the interplay of teachers' educational beliefs, pedagogical content knowledge and perceptions of the curriculum that determines what is taught and instructional strategies used to teach a concept.

Transfer of training through a science education professional development program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sowards, Alan Bosworth

Educational research substantiates that effective professional development models must be developed in order for reform-based teaching strategies to be implemented in classrooms. This study examined the effectiveness of an established reform-based science education professional development program, Project LIFE. The study investigated what impact Project LIFE had on participants implementation of reform-based instruction in their classroom three years after participation in the science inservice program. Participants in the case studies described use of reform-based instruction and program factors that influenced transfer of training to their classrooms. Subjects of the study were 5th--10th grade teachers who participated in the 1997--98 Project LIFE professional development program. The study employed a mixed design including both qualitative and quantitative methodology. The qualitative data was collected from multiple sources which included: an open-ended survey, classroom observations, structured interviews, and artifacts. Three purposeful selection of teachers for case studies were made with teacher approval and authorization from building principals. Interview responses from the three case studies were further analyzed qualitatively using the microcomputer software NUD*IST. Tables and figures generated from NUD*IST graphically represented the case study teachers response and case comparison to six established categories: (1) continued implementation of reform-based instruction, (2) use of reform-based instruction, (3) program factors supporting transfer of training, (4) professional development, (5) goals of Project LIFE, and (6) critical issues in science education. Paired t-tests were used to analysis the quantitative data collected from the Survey of Attitudes Toward Science and Science Teaching. The study concluded the 1997--98 Project LIFE participants continued to implement reform-based instruction in their classrooms three years later. According to the teachers the program factors having the most influence on transferring training to their classroom were the positive responses from students; reflections with other teachers regarding instructional activities and strategies; modeling of activities and strategies they received from Project LIFE staff while participating in the program; and teachers commitment to reform-based instruction. These findings are important in enhancing national science reform goals. In order for teachers to be able to implement science-reform-based instruction in their classrooms they must experience effective professional development models. Designers of professional development programs must understand which factors in staff development programs most contribute to transfer of training.

Teaching Focus Group Interviewing: Benefits and Challenges

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

George, Molly

2013-01-01

Focus group interviewing is widely used by academic and applied researchers. Given the popularity and strengths of this method, it is surprising how rarely focus group interviewing is taught in the undergraduate classroom and how few resources exist to support instructors who wish to train students to use this technique. This article fills the gap…

Relationships between Teacher Interview Scores and On-the-Job Performance.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Loehr, Peter

Relationships between classroom teacher preemployment interview scores and performance during the first 6 months of employment were investigated in an Ohio school district. Permanently employed teachers were the target of the study, which used data from 4 aspects of interview scores and 13 performance criteria to study relationships between 2…

Secondary Science Teachers Making Sense of Model-Based Classroom Instruction: Understanding the Learning and Learning Pathways Teachers Describe as Supporting Changes in Teaching Practice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hvidsten, Connie J.

Connie J. Hvidsten September 2016 Education Secondary Science Teachers Making Sense of Model-Based Classroom Instruction: Understanding the Learning and Learning Pathways Teachers Describe as Supporting Changes in Teaching Practice This dissertation consists of three papers analyzing writings and interviews of experienced secondary science teachers during and after a two-year professional development (PD) program focused on model-based reasoning (MBR). MBR is an approach to science instruction that provides opportunities for students to use conceptual models to make sense of natural phenomena in ways that are similar to the use of models within the scientific community. The aim of this research is to better understand the learning and learning pathways teachers identified as valuable in supporting changes in their teaching practice. To accomplish this aim, the papers analyze the ways teachers 1) ascribe their learning to various aspects of the program, 2) describe what they learned, and 3) reflect on the impact the PD had on their teaching practice. Twenty-one secondary science teachers completed the Innovations in Science Instruction through Modeling (ISIM) program from 2007 through 2009. Commonalities in the written reflections and interview responses led to a set of generalizable findings related to the impacts and outcomes of the PD. The first of the three papers describes elements of the ISIM program that teachers associated with their own learning. One of the most frequently mentioned PD feature was being in the position of an adult learner. Embedding learning in instructional practice by collaboratively developing and revising lessons, and observing the lessons in one-another's classrooms provided a sense of professional community, accountability, and support teachers reported were necessary to overcome the challenges of implementing new pedagogical practices. Additionally, teachers described that opportunities to reflect on their learning and connect their experiences to a larger literature base and rationale helped them negotiate the dissonance occurring as they tried new practices in their own classroom. Teachers associated these elements with learning about both science content and effective instructional pedagogy and producing a level of dissatisfaction with current understanding that motivated their persistence when met with obstacles or struggles. The second of the three papers analyzes what teachers said they learned in the ISIM program. Teachers' reported learning about scientific models, both how they are used in both the scientific community and how they can support students' classroom learning. Additionally, teachers mentioned learning more about the science they taught through interacting with models during the PD and learned more about effective teaching strategies. Teachers also reported learning about themselves as teachers and learners, as well as about the school and classroom contexts that shape their ability to implement new instructional practices. Finally, the third paper draws from interviews occurring a year or more after the program ended to identify how teachers reported changes in their classroom instruction resulting from their ISIM participation. Four of the teachers reported little or no change in classroom practice. Eight teachers described changes to their teaching to incorporate elements of the professional development, but who fell short of adopting model-based reasoning as a core feature of their classroom instruction. Nine teachers expressed a strong understanding of modeling instruction, and its ongoing influence on their classroom instruction.

The Importance of Building and Maintaining Trust in Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drug Education Classrooms and Hurdles to Open Communication

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

deKoven, Aram

2007-01-01

This research examines the importance of trust in the classroom, and answers the following questions: 1) is trust important to create and maintain in the classroom? 2) What is the significance of trust between a teacher and a student, and 3) do students trust their drug and alcohol educators? In-depth interviews were conducted with 38 middle…

Facebook: The Use of Social Media to Engage Parents in a Preschool Obesity Prevention Curriculum.

PubMed

Swindle, Taren M; Ward, Wendy L; Whiteside-Mansell, Leanne

2018-01-01

This study investigated the use of Facebook to deliver health-related education materials to augment a preschool classroom-based obesity prevention curriculum. Cross-sectional, mixed methods (descriptive and interviews). Head Start classrooms administered by 2 large agencies (1 rural and 1 urban). Convenience sample of parents in 13 classrooms (cohort 1, 3 classrooms; cohort 2, 10 classrooms). Delivery of nutrition education curriculum content using social media (Facebook). Qualitative interviews assessed barriers and facilitators to Facebook use. Parent views, likes, and comments were measured to reflect parent engagement with Facebook. Content analyses (qualitative data) and descriptive statistics (quantitative data). Family access (views) and interaction (comments and likes) with the posts varied based on type and content of posts. Rural families were more active. Barriers to parental Facebook engagement included a desire to see more posts from classroom teachers, lack of time, and misunderstanding about privacy protections. Facilitators of parental Facebook engagement included perceived utility of the content and social support. Facebook was found to be a feasible platform to provide nutrition education and facilitated varying levels of parental engagement. Lessons learned and implications for prevention and intervention programming are offered. Copyright © 2017 Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Seeing things through science eyes: A case study of an exemplary elementary teacher

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Foster, Andrea Susan

Science-eyed elementary teachers exhibit relentless passions for replacing traditional teaching with realistic, integrated, responsible instruction with science at its core. The purpose of this study was to explore an exemplary elementary teacher's thinking about science and how it serves as a vehicle for the learning that occurs in her primary classroom. Two research questions were investigated in this study. First, what does it mean for an exemplary elementary teacher to view all learning with science eyes? Second, in what ways does the science-oriented elementary teacher use her knowledge of science content, pedagogy, and practical experience to structure her students' learning and her classroom teaching? A naturalistic methodology was employed in this research effort. Classroom observations, teacher interviews, documents, and selected artifacts were analyzed using a constant comparative method (Glaser & Strauss, 1967; Lincoln & Guba, 1985) and the analysis tools of HyperRESEARCH (1994) in an effort to unravel the complex, intuitive knowledge of a nationally recognized first grade teacher. Data analyses provided insightful information about this exceptional teacher and how she organizes, plans, and implements effective lessons that integrate science with all subject areas. Four direct observation themes, Best Practice, Just Like a Scientist, Integrating Curriculum - A Balancing Act, and Expert Pedagogy, and six interview themes, Curriculum - What to Teach?, Instruction - How to Teach, Knowing Students, Getting Stuff, Professionalism, and Reflective Practitioner, emerged from independent analyses of two data sets. Three overall themes, Head, Heart, and Hands of an Exemplary Science Elementary Teacher, emerged from a convergent content analysis. The themes provide the foundation for a proposed model of an expert science pedagogue. Ten portrait-like, impressionistic, vignettes are included in this unique study to capture the spirit of the science-eyed elementary teacher's outstanding work in her first-grade classroom. Conclusions indicate that an in-depth knowledge and genuine passion for science, students, and teaching drives science-eyed teachers. The science-eyed elementary teacher organizes curriculum and instruction with scientific principles and skills of inquiry in mind. She improvises lessons to meet students' needs and interests in science. The science-eyed elementary teacher seeks out other science-eyed teachers. She is unique, inventive, and self aware.

Secondary science teachers' view toward and classroom translation of sustained professional development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lewis, Elizabeth Blake

This study concerns the phenomenon of secondary science teacher learning and enacting instructional strategies learned at the Communication in Science Inquiry Project (CISIP) teacher professional development events, as well as teacher perception of, and relationship to, this year-long professional development program. The CISIP program teaches science teachers how to build scientific classroom discourse communities with their students. Some of the science teachers were previous participants in the professional development, and acted as mentor teachers. The research design employed an integrated conceptual framework of situated learning theory with an analytical lens of teachers' professional, institutional and affinity, identities. A multi-method approach was used to generate data. Throughout the 2007-2008 academic year, the teachers' fidelity to the professional development model was measured using a classroom observation instrument aligned with the professional development model. From these observation data a longitudinal model, using hierarchical linear modeling, was constructed. In addition, surveys and interview data were used to construct both whole group and case studies of two high school science teachers who taught biology at the same school. The results indicated that there was a significant difference between previous and new participants; specifically, the longer teachers had participated in the professional development, and adopted a mentorship role, the greater their fidelity of classroom instruction to the CISIP model. Additionally, the case study teacher who developed a CISIP model-aligned affinity identity implemented more of the instructional strategies than the teacher who maintained his school-based institutional identity.

Evolution as represented through argumentation: A qualitative study on reasoning and argumentation in high school biology teaching practices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yalcinoglu, Pelin

This study aimed to explore high school biology teachers' epistemological criteria and their attention to reasoning and argumentation within their instructional practices. This study investigated: (1) what epistemological criteria do high school biology teachers use when justifying the validity of conclusions, (2) what is the frequency of the explicit use of reasoning and argumentation, if any, in high school biology teachers' instructional practices, and to what extend are reasoning and argumentation skills reflected, if at all, in high school biology teachers' modes of assessment. Three different data collection methods were employed in this study; face-to-face interviews, classroom observations, and document collections. Teachers' epistemological criteria were investigated to provide insight about their reasoning structures. This investigation was made possible by having teachers provide an argument about the validity of hypothetical conclusions drawn by the students based on two different scenarios related to evolution. Toulmin's Argument Pattern used to create rubric to analyze high school biology teachers' levels of reasoning through argumentation. Results of the data analysis suggested following findings. First, high school biology teachers participated in this study presented variety of epistemological criteria which were presented as high, moderate and low levels of reasoning through the argumentations. Second, elements of Toulmin's Argument Pattern were visible in the participants teaching practices, however students were not explicitly introduced to a well structured argument in those classrooms. High level of reasoning was not evident in the instructional practices of the observed teachers. High school biology classrooms which were observed in this study do not provide opportunities for students to practice high level of reasoning or improve their argumentation skills. Third, Interview Protocols designed for this study were found useful to identify the epistemological criteria and level of reasoning individuals presented through argumentation. Toulmin's Argument Pattern provides a practical method to analyze the structure of arguments. Results of this study suggest the following implications for improving science education. These implications might be helpful in increasing teacher awareness of the importance of explicit teaching of reasoning and argumentation in science classrooms. Toulmin's Argument Model should be introduced to teachers through teacher education or professional development programs to increase the use of reasoning and argumentation skills in instructional practices. Toulmin's Argument Pattern may be used to design lessons or unit plans which present science as argumentation. Therefore, by engaging students in argumentation, teachers may help students to improve their content knowledge along with reasoning and argumentation skills in science classrooms. The results of this study suggest that use of Toulmin's Argument Pattern to evaluate high school biology teachers' presented levels of reasoning is a promising approach to understanding the structure of reasoning and argumentation that biology teachers use when providing judgments about the validity of hypothetical conclusions. The interview protocols and the rubrics used in this study should be tested in different subject areas in order to enhance and validate the use of Toulmin's Argument Pattern in measuring individuals' epistemological criteria and level of reasoning.

Science Students' Classroom Discourse: Tasha's Umwelt

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arnold, Jenny

2012-04-01

Over the past twenty-five years researchers have been concerned with understanding the science student. The need for such research is still grounded in contemporary issues including providing opportunities for all students to develop scientific literacy and the failure of school science to connect with student's lives, interests and personal identities. The research reported here is unusual in its use of discourse analysis in social psychology to contribute to an understanding of the way students make meaning in secondary school science. Data constructed for the study was drawn from videotapes of nine consecutive lessons in a year-seven science classroom in Melbourne, post-lesson video-stimulated interviews with students and the teacher, classroom observation and the students' written work. The classroom videotapes were recorded using four cameras and seven audio tracks by the International Centre for Classroom Research at the University of Melbourne. Student talk within and about their science lessons was analysed from a discursive perspective. Classroom episodes in which students expressed their sense of personal identity and agency, knowledge, attitude or emotion in relation to science were identified for detailed analysis of the function of the discourse used by students, and in particular the way students were positioned by others or positioned themselves. This article presents the discursive Umwelt or life-space of one middle years science student, Tasha. Her case is used here to highlight the complex social process of meaning making in science classrooms and the need to attend to local moral orders of rights and duties in research on student language use, identity and learning in science.

`We put on the glasses and Moon comes closer!' Urban Second Graders Exploring the Earth, the Sun and Moon Through 3D Technologies in a Science and Literacy Unit

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Isik-Ercan, Zeynep; Zeynep Inan, Hatice; Nowak, Jeffrey A.; Kim, Beomjin

2014-01-01

This qualitative case study describes (a) the ways 3D visualization, coupled with other science and literacy experiences, supported young children's first exploration of the Earth-Sun-Moon system and (b) the perspectives of classroom teachers and children on using 3D visualization. We created three interactive 3D software modules that simulate day and night, Moon phases and seasons. These modules were used in a science and literacy unit for 35 second graders at an urban elementary school in Midwestern USA. Data included pre- and post-interviews, audio-taped lessons and classroom observations. Post-interviews demonstrated that children's knowledge of the shapes and the movements of the Earth and Moon, alternation of day and night, the occurrence of the seasons, and Moon's changing appearance increased. Second graders reported that they enjoyed expanding their knowledge through hands-on experiences; through its reality effect, 3D visualization enabled them to observe the space objects that move in the virtual space. The teachers noted that 3D visualization stimulated children's interest in space and that using 3D visualization in combination with other teaching methods-literacy experiences, videos and photos, simulations, discussions, and presentations-supported student learning. The teachers and the students still experienced challenges using 3D visualization due to technical problems with 3D vision and time constraints. We conclude that 3D visualization offers hands-on experiences for challenging science concepts and may support young children's ability to view phenomena that would typically be observed through direct, long-term observations in outer space. Results imply a reconsideration of assumed capabilities of young children to understand astronomical phenomena.

Renegotiating the pedagogic contract: Teaching in digitally enhanced secondary science classrooms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ajayi, Ajibola Oluneye

This qualitative case study explores the effects of emerging digital technology as a teaching and learning tool in secondary school science classrooms. The study examines three teachers' perspectives on how the use of technology affects the teacher-student pedagogic relationship. The "pedagogic contract" is used as a construct to analyze the changes that took place in these teachers' classrooms amid the use of this new technology. The overarching question for this research is: How was the pedagogic contract renegotiated in three secondary science teachers' classrooms through the use of digitally enhanced science instruction. To answer this question, data was collected via semi-structured teacher interviews, classroom observations, and analysis of classroom documents such as student assignments, tests and Study Guides. This study reveals that the everyday use of digital technologies in these classrooms resulted in a re-negotiated pedagogic contract across three major dimensions: content of learning, method and management of learning activities, and assessment of learning. The extent to which the pedagogic contract was renegotiated varied with each of the teachers studied. Yet in each case, the content of learning was extended to include new topics, and greater depth of learning within the mandated curriculum. The management of learning was reshaped around metacognitive strategies, personal goal-setting, individual pacing, and small-group learning activities. With the assessment of learning, there was increased emphasis on self-directed interactive testing as a formative assessment tool. This study highlights the aspects of science classrooms that are most directly affected by the introduction of digital technologies and demonstrates how those changes are best understood as a renegotiation of the teacher-student pedagogic contract.

Scientists in the making: An ethnographic investigation of scientific processes as literate practice in an elementary classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crawford, Teresa Jo

This study explored the issue of literacy in science by examining how the social and academic literate practices in an elementary classroom formed the basis for learning across the curriculum, with a specific focus on the disciplinary field of science. Through the study of classroom interaction, issues related to student knowledge and ability were addressed as they pertain to scientific literacy in the context of science education reform. The theoretical framework guiding this study was drawn from sociocultural studies of scientific communities and interactional ethnography in education. To investigate the literate practices of science in a school setting, data were collected over a two-year period with the same teacher in her third grade and then her fourth/fifth grade classroom. Data were collected through participant observation in the form of fieldnotes, video data, interviews, and various artifacts (e.g., writings, drawings, teaching protocols). Using ethnographic and sociolinguistic methods of analysis this work examined classroom members' discursive practices to illustrate the role that discourse plays in creating opportunities for engagement in, and access to, scientific knowledge. These analyses revealed that the discursive actions and practices among members of this classroom shaped a particular type of learning environment that was process-oriented and inquiry based. It was shown that this learning environment afforded opportunities for students to engage in the processes of science outside the official, planned curriculum, often leading to whole class scientific investigations and discussions. Additionally, within this classroom community students were able to draw on multiple discourses to display their knowledge of scientific concepts and practices. Overall, this study found that the literate practices of this classroom community, as they were socially constructed among members, contributed to opportunities for students to practice science and demonstrate scientific literacy.

The Artists-in-the-Classroom Project: A Closer Look.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fogg, Terry L.; Smith, Marilyn

2001-01-01

Interviews with teachers involved in an elementary school's artists-in-the-classroom project revealed a range of attitudes: enthusiasts, supporters, skeptics, individualists, and tired teachers. Test scores, school climate, and attendance improved. Teachers' willingness to participate was crucial to the project's success. (Contains 23 references.)…

Accessing the Classroom Discourse Community through Accountable Talk: English Learners' Voices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ardasheva, Yuliya; Howell, Penny B.; Vidrio Magaña, Margarita

2016-01-01

This case study draws on Gee's (1989) "D/discourse theory" to investigate English learners' (ELs') perspectives regarding Accountable Talk (AT)--a structured, discourse-intensive instructional approach--after a yearlong implementation in three content-based (mathematics) middle school classrooms. Interviews with 21 ELs (3 Advanced…

Relationships in the Flipped Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCollum, Brett M.; Fleming, Cassidy L.; Plotnikoff, Kara M.; Skagen, Darlene N.

2017-01-01

This study examines the effectiveness of flipped classrooms in chemistry, and identifies relationships as a major factor impacting the success of flipped instruction methods. Examination of student interview data reveals factors that affect the development of peer-peer, peer-peer leader, and peer-expert relationships in firstyear general chemistry…

Teachers' Perception of Social Justice in Mathematics Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Panthi, Ram Krishna; Luitel, Bal Chandra; Belbase, Shashidhar

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to explore mathematics teachers' perception of social justice in mathematics classrooms. We applied interpretive qualitative method for data collection, analysis, and interpretation through iterative process. We administered in-depth semi-structured interviews to capture the perceptions of three mathematics teachers…

Teachers' Perception of Social Justice in Mathematics Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Panthi, Ram Krishna; Luitel, Bal Chandra; Belbase, Shashidhar

2018-01-01

The purpose of this study was to explore mathematics teachers' perception of social justice in mathematics classrooms. We applied interpretive qualitative method for data collection, analysis, and interpretation through iterative process. We administered in-depth semi-structured interviews to capture the perceptions of three mathematics teachers…

Continuing Professional Development and Learning in Primary Science Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fraser, Christine A.

2010-01-01

This article explores the effects of continuing professional development (CPD) on teachers' and pupils' experiences of learning and teaching science in primary classrooms. During 2006-2007, quantitative and qualitative data were elicited from two primary teachers in Scotland using questionnaires, semi-structured interviews and video-stimulated…

Gender interaction in coed physical education: a study in Turkey.

PubMed

Koca, Canan

2009-01-01

Although there has been a long-standing debate about whether a single-sex or mixed-sex environment is better for students in many Western countries, coeducation is one of the taken-for-granted issues in the modern Turkish education system. This study examined commonly expressed concerns about gender equity in a mixed-sex environment within the context of physical education (PE) in Turkey. The purpose of the study was to examine teacher-student interaction in the coed PE classroom, focusing on gender-stereotyped beliefs. Participants consisted of two PE teachers and 37 eighth-grade students from a private school situated in suburban Ankara Turkey. The modified observational instrument with the combination of Teacher-Student Interaction (TSI) and Interactions for Sex Equity in Classroom Teaching Observation System (INTERSECT) was used to assess teacher-student interaction in the classroom. In order to understand students' and teachers' gender-stereotyped beliefs, individual interviews were also conducted. The findings of this study indicated that both male and female PE teachers interact more frequently with boys, and this interaction was influenced by gender-stereotyped beliefs of both teachers and students. In sum, similar to many other western countries, the movement toward coeducation in Turkey has not automatically brought equal opportunities for girls or boys in PE.

The influences of implementing state-mandated science assessment on teacher practice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Katzmann, Jason Matthew

Four high school Biology teachers, two novice and two experienced, participated in a year and a half case study. By utilizing a naturalistic paradigm, the four individuals were studied in their natural environment, their classrooms. Data sources included: three semi-structured interviews, classroom observation field notes, and classroom artifacts. Through cross-case analysis and a constant comparative methodology, coding nodes where combined and refined resulting in the final themes for discussion. The following research question was investigated: what is the impact of high-stakes testing on high school Biology teacher's instructional planning, instructional practices and classroom assessments? Seven final themes were realized: Assessment, CSAP, Planning, Pressure, Standards, Teaching and Time. Each theme was developed and discussed utilizing each participant's voice. Trustworthiness of this study was established via five avenues: triangulation of data sources, credibility, transferability, dependability and confirmability. A model of the influences of high-stakes testing on teacher practice was developed to describe the seven themes (Figure 5). This model serves as an illustration of the complex nature of teacher practice and the influences upon it. The four participants in this study were influenced by high-stakes assessment. It influenced their instructional decisions, assessment practices, use of time, planning decisions and decreased the amount of inquiry that occurred in the classroom. Implications of this research and future research directions are described.

Perceptions of Learning: Interviews with First and Second Graders in a Hungarian Primary School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Habók, Anita; Babarczy, Anna

2018-01-01

The paper discusses children' attitudes towards school and learning soon after entering primary school in Hungary. First and second grade primary school students (N = 33) were interviewed. The interviews explored the following questions: What are the teachers' and the children's roles in the classroom? What is learning? Where do children learn?…

The Impact of a Professional Development Programme on Primary Teachers' Classroom Practice and Pupils' Attitudes to Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, Greg

2015-04-01

This study investigates the relationship, if any, between teacher participation in a targeted professional development programme and changes in participants' instructional practice and their pupils' attitudes to learning primary science. The programme took place over a 2-year period in 15 small rural schools in the West of Ireland. Data sources include teacher and pupil questionnaires, semi-structured interviews and informal classroom observations. The findings reveal that as a result of their involvement in the programme, (a) teachers' instructional practice in science lessons became more inquiry-based and they were engaging their pupils in substantially more hands-on activities in science lessons and (b) pupils developed more positive attitudes towards learning science. The findings from this study add to what is known about delivering effective professional development.

English Language Community College Students in the Nursing Classroom: Exploring What Matters

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mulready-Shick, JoAnn; Parker, Tara L.

2013-01-01

This qualitative study explored the lived experiences of students as English language learners in the nursing classroom. Employing interpretive phenomenological methodology, participants at an urban community college in the Northeast engaged in open-ended interviews that yielded new understandings of everyday concerns that impacted their academic…

"I Just See All Children as Children": Teachers' Perceptions about Inclusion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leatherman, Jane M.

2007-01-01

This narrative study examined teachers' perceptions of their inclusive classrooms. Eight early childhood teachers responded to open-ended interview questions about their experiences teaching children with and without disabilities in the same classroom environment. The social constructivist view of teaching and learning is highlighted as the…

Engaging Undergraduates in Feminist Classrooms: An Exploration of Professors' Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Spencer, Leland G.

2015-01-01

This article reports the results of a feminist action research project that sought to ascertain professors' best practices for engaging undergraduates in feminist classrooms. In semi-structured interviews, professors recommended assigning readings from a variety of positionalities; creating a safe space for class discussion; relying on data to…

Teachers' Perceptions of Classroom Behaviour and Working Memory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alloway, Tracy Packiam

2012-01-01

Working memory, ability to remember and manipulate information, is crucial to academic attainment. The aim of the present study was to understand teachers' perception of working memory and how it impacts classroom behaviour. A semi-structured interview was used to explore teachers' ability to define working memory, identify these difficulties in…

Learning and Classroom Preferences of Gifted Eighth Graders: A Qualitative Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Samardzija, Nadine; Peterson, Jean Sunde

2015-01-01

The purpose of this phenomenological qualitative study was to explore how academically gifted eighth graders experience learning, with special attention to learning and classroom preferences. Twenty-three students were interviewed individually. The central phenomenon was that their learning preferences were complex, nuanced, and idiosyncratic, and…

(Inter)Views: Engaging Freshmen in Primary Research in the Composition Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Webb, Adam

2010-01-01

While literacy autobiographies, citizenship autobiographies, and family narratives are common first writing assignments in the freshmen composition classroom, they are usually followed by some kind of research proposal, annotated bibliography, or research essay. While there is nothing wrong with literacy and citizenship autobiographies or family…

Student Inquiry in the Research Process, Part 4: Inquiry Research Investigation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Preddy, Leslie B.

2003-01-01

Explains a hands-on, classroom teacher/library media specialist collaborative model for implementing the inquiry approach to the research process into the classroom and school library media center. Topics include the investigation phase; source notes; primary sources; interviews; community resources; storyboards; and peer conferences. (LRW)

The Discourse of Classroom Interaction in Kenyan Primary Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pontefract, Caroline; Hardman, Frank

2005-01-01

This paper addresses the role of classroom discourse in supporting children's learning in Kenyan primary schools. The discourse strategies of 27 teachers teaching English, mathematics and science across the primary phase were intensively studied using discourse analysis and semi-structured interviews. A survey questionnaire (n = 359) was also used…

Pupils' Perspectives on the Lived Pedagogy of the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Niemi, Reetta; Kumpulainen, Kristiina; Lipponen, Lasse; Hilppö, Jaakko

2015-01-01

This paper is based on a pedagogical action research initiative that explores what constitutes the "lived pedagogy" of the classroom from the pupils' perspective. Photography and group interviews were utilised to allow pupils to express their perspectives. The results show that pupils considered situations meaningful when they were able…

"PAY ATTENTION!": How Teachers and Students Construct Attentiveness in First Grade Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Milman, Noriko Sabene

2009-01-01

Research indicates that early school success influences eventual life chances and that attentiveness in the classroom contributes to early school success. Using ethnographic fieldnotes, interviews, short surveys, and video footage collected over three school years, I investigate how teachers and young students experience "attentiveness" during…

Achieving Standards in a Fiber Optic Mathematics Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zbiek, Rose Mary; Foletta, Gina M.

1995-01-01

In response to standards set by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, K-12 teachers were interviewed to investigate issues related to implementing standards in K-12 fiber optic mathematics classes. Issues include: achieving student-centered classrooms; incorporating technology into distance education; and structuring assessment so more…

Defining Role in the New Classroom Teams.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thomas, Gary

1991-01-01

Interviews with four teachers, one parent, one assistant, and two ancillary helpers found that classroom teams possess little structure with minimal role definition. Participants erect defenses against the lack of definition and use a process termed "fraternity" to get along with one another and camouflage uncertainties and tensions. (SK)

Fear in the Palestinian Classroom: Pedagogy, Authoritarianism and Transformation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Affouneh, Saida; Hargreaves, Eleanore

2015-01-01

Drawing on pictures, written sentences and interview contributions, this article explores some Palestinian children's perspectives in order to gain insights into some children's classroom fear in the light of its potential influence on learning. After presenting some existing research indicating a negative relationship between fear and young…

LGBT Students in the College Composition Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Furrow, Hannah

2012-01-01

This study explored the concerns of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) students in college writing classrooms. The researcher interviewed 37 college students and 11 faculty members from a variety of different types of colleges and universities. LGBT students stated concerns about their overall campus experiences, safety, and identity.…

Russian Adolescents' Perceptions of Fairness in the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bempechat, Janine; Ronfard, Samuel; Mirny, Anna; Li, Jin; Holloway, Susan D.

2013-01-01

The influence of teacher care and support in students' learning and motivation underscores the critical importance of fairness perceptions in the classroom. In this qualitative study we examined perceptions of unfairness and fairness among Russian grade nine students. We interviewed a total of 32 students in two traditional Moscow high schools…

Creating Lifelong Learners: Fostering Facilitation, Modeling, & Choice in the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thomas, Angela Falter

2015-01-01

This article discusses alternatives to the lecture-style teaching that remains a fundamental practice for many middle school classrooms. Information was accumulated by pre-service middle school language arts teachers, who interviewed their mentor for their student teaching experience, focusing on how each teacher attempts to foster lifelong…

Teachers' Increased Use of Informational Text: A Phenomenological Study of Five Primary Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Young, Heather D.; Goering, Christian Z.

2018-01-01

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explain how the Common Core State Standards may have influenced teachers' practices and philosophies regarding literacy instruction. Conducted in five kindergarten through second-grade classrooms within one elementary school, this research study collected semi-structured interviews, classroom…

Students' integration of multiple representations in a titration experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kunze, Nicole M.

A complete understanding of a chemical concept is dependent upon a student's ability to understand the microscopic or particulate nature of the phenomenon and integrate the microscopic, symbolic, and macroscopic representations of the phenomenon. Acid-base chemistry is a general chemistry topic requiring students to understand the topics of chemical reactions, solutions, and equilibrium presented earlier in the course. In this study, twenty-five student volunteers from a second semester general chemistry course completed two interviews. The first interview was completed prior to any classroom instruction on acids and bases. The second interview took place after classroom instruction, a prelab activity consisting of a titration calculation worksheet, a titration computer simulation, or a microscopic level animation of a titration, and two microcomputer-based laboratory (MBL) titration experiments. During the interviews, participants were asked to define and describe acid-base concepts and in the second interview they also drew the microscopic representations of four stages in an acid-base titration. An analysis of the data showed that participants had integrated the three representations of an acid-base titration to varying degrees. While some participants showed complete understanding of acids, bases, titrations, and solution chemistry, other participants showed several alternative conceptions concerning strong acid and base dissociation, the formation of titration products, and the dissociation of soluble salts. Before instruction, participants' definitions of acid, base, and pH were brief and consisted of descriptive terms. After instruction, the definitions were more scientific and reflected the definitions presented during classroom instruction.

Examining authentic talk and student authorship of scientific ideas: Public pedagogy and affinity space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Slaton, Adriane McNamara

One of the great challenges to teachers both historically and contemporarily is to facilitate a classroom as a group of students, while concurrently attending to each individual student. As the profession becomes increasingly aware and sensitive to student (dis)abilities, academic giftedness, pressures of athletics and extra-curricular events, and acknowledges the racial, cultural, sexual, economic, gendered identities of students--- the complexity of each individual student becomes ever more apparent. It is a seemingly insurmountable challenge. This dissertation examines how stem cell unit guided group learning while also attending to the individual learning needs of each student. What makes classroom study unusual in research is that it is completely "usual". This study was not part of a university partnership nor did it take place in an affluent school district. Instead, this unit took place in a large, Midwestern urban high school that was/is often written off as a failing---underscoring that powerful science teaching and learning is occurring in schools society simultaneously portrays as victim and villain in the media. Using a sociocultural lens, this ethnographic study draws upon two frameworks, Wenger's communities of practice (1998) and Hayes and Gee's (2011) public pedagogy, to examine how participation in a debate individualizes and personalizes student knowledge and participation in science. The primary use of a community of practice framework allowed for analysis of the norms, rules, practices, and routines of Classroom 507---to establish the nature of the community of learners in the study. A secondary framework, public pedagogy, allowed for deeper understanding of the practices drawn upon in the classroom through consideration of the design, resources, and an emergent "affinity space". This hybridized analysis led to further understanding of how students and teacher stand to learn, participate, engage and use a classroom lesson, the debate, to serve their own, unique purposes. During my observations of biology Classroom 507, the class engaged a three-week unit on the ethics of stem cells which ended in a class-wide debate. I had the opportunity to observe, film, and interview students and their teacher. Through observation, interviews, and film, I began to understand the classroom community (its norms, practices, and routines) but also began to recognize how this unit functioned to teach content but push on student thought creation and development as individuals. In this dissertation, I construct something I call an "affinity story" for four focal students (Mismin, Kevin, Molly, and Michael) and their teacher (Theresa). These affinity stories capture how each of the individuals co-opted the debate space in various ways allowing for engagement and participation in ways that were true to themselves and their social and academic needs. Implications from this dissertation include: 1) re-considering the importance of how both students and teacher enrich science understandings when public, authentic talk is encouraged; 2) how teachers can design units and draw from diverse resources to enrich the learning experience of the individual; 3) how students and teacher appropriate learning spaces for their own individual social and academic needs; 4) to consider what it means to allow students to follow their affinities within the science classroom; and 5) to inspire teachers as they engage in the difficult task we call teaching.

How does a Next Generation Science Standard Aligned, Inquiry Based, Science Unit Impact Student Achievement of Science Practices and Student Science Efficacy in an Elementary Classroom?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Whittington, Kayla Lee

This study examined the impact of an inquiry based Next Generation Science Standard aligned science unit on elementary students' understanding and application of the eight Science and Engineering Practices and their relation in building student problem solving skills. The study involved 44 second grade students and three participating classroom teachers. The treatment consisted of a school district developed Second Grade Earth Science unit: What is happening to our playground? that was taught at the beginning of the school year. Quantitative results from a Likert type scale pre and post survey and from student content knowledge assessments showed growth in student belief of their own abilities in the science classroom. Qualitative data gathered from student observations and interviews performed at the conclusion of the Earth Science unit further show gains in student understanding and attitudes. This study adds to the existing literature on the importance of standard aligned, inquiry based science curriculum that provides time for students to engage in science practices.

Emotion-based preventive intervention: Effectively promoting emotion knowledge and adaptive behavior among at-risk preschoolers.

PubMed

Finlon, Kristy J; Izard, Carroll E; Seidenfeld, Adina; Johnson, Stacy R; Cavadel, Elizabeth Woodburn; Ewing, E Stephanie Krauthamer; Morgan, Judith K

2015-11-01

Effectiveness studies of preschool social-emotional programs are needed in low-income, diverse populations to help promote the well-being of at-risk children. Following an initial program efficacy study 2 years prior, 248 culturally diverse Head Start preschool children participated in the current effectiveness trial and received either the Emotion-Based Prevention Program (EBP) or the I Can Problem Solve (ICPS) intervention. Pre- and postdata collection included direct child assessment, teacher report, parent interview, and independent observations. Teachers implementing the EBP intervention demonstrated good and consistent fidelity to the program. Overall, children in EBP classrooms gained more emotion knowledge and displayed greater decreases in negative emotion expressions and internalizing behaviors across the implementation period as compared to children in ICPS classrooms. In addition, cumulative risk, parental depressive symptoms, and classroom climate significantly moderated treatment effects. For children experiencing more stress or less support, EBP produced more successful outcomes than did ICPS. These results provide evidence of EBP sustainability and program effectiveness, as did previous findings that demonstrated EBP improvements in emotion knowledge, regulation skills, and behavior problems replicated under unsupervised program conditions.

The study of middle school mathematics and science teachers' practices, perceptions, and attitudes related to mathematics and science integration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leszczynski, Eliza

The purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate the nature of mathematics and science connections made by sixth and seventh grade mathematics and science teachers in their classrooms. This study also examined the extent to which these connections represented mathematics and science integration and described the teachers' perceptions of and attitudes about mathematics and science integration. The primary data sources included classroom observations and teacher interviews. Findings suggested that teacher practices in making mathematics and science connections in the classroom incorporated many of the characteristics of integrated instruction presented in the literature. Teacher attitudes toward integration were found to be generally positive and supportive of integrated instruction. Mathematics teachers shared a common perception of integration being two separate lessons taught together in one lesson. In contrast, science teachers perceived integration to be a seamless blend of the two disciplines. The researcher related these perceptions and attitudes to the teachers' past experiences with mathematics and science connections and integration, and also to their practices of mathematics and science connections in the study.

Science Teachers' Response to the Digital Education Revolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nielsen, Wendy; Miller, K. Alex; Hoban, Garry

2015-08-01

We report a case study of two highly qualified science teachers as they implemented laptop computers in their Years 9 and 10 science classes at the beginning of the `Digital Education Revolution,' Australia's national one-to-one laptop program initiated in 2009. When a large-scale investment is made in a significant educational change, it is important to consider teachers perspectives and responses to such change and we draw from sociocultural perspectives for our analysis. Through interviews and classroom observations, our interpretive analysis identified four key tensions and contradictions. These include the following: (1) barriers to innovative science teaching; (2) maintaining classroom and school connectivity; (3) teacher versus student expectations; and (4) changes to classroom management. Analysis leads to implications for the future of this and similar programs. The study shows that while these two teachers were committed to developing and delivering technology-rich science lessons, there were many factors that challenge how the implementation progressed. The findings from this study have implications for the continued engagement of teachers in this and other jurisdictions considering the introduction of one-to-one laptop programs.

The influence of a Classroom Model of Scientific Scholarship on Four Girls' Trajectories of Identification with Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cook, Melissa Sunshine

This study examines the teacher's role in shaping the identity construction resources available in a classroom and the ways in which individual students take up, modify, and appropriate those resources to construct themselves as scientists through interaction with their teacher and peers. Drawing on frameworks of identity construction and social positioning, I propose that the locally-negotiated classroom-level cultural model of what it means to be a "good" science student forms the arena in which students construct a sense of their own competence at, affiliation with, and interest in science. The setting for this study was a 6th grade science class at a progressive urban elementary school whose population roughly represents the ethnic and socioeconomic diversity of the state of California. The teacher was an experienced science and math teacher interested in social justice and inquiry teaching. Drawing from naturalistic observations, video and artifact analysis, survey data, and repeated interviews with students and the teacher, I demonstrated what it meant to be a "good" science student in this particular cultural community by analyzing what was required, reinforced, and rewarded in this classroom. Next, I traced the influence of this particular classroom's conception of what it meant to be good at science on the trajectories of identification with science of four 6th grade girls selected to represent a variety of stances towards science, levels of classroom participation, and personal backgrounds. Scientific scholarship in this class had two parts: values related to science as a discipline, and a more generic set of school-related values one might see in any classroom. Different meanings of and values for science were indexed in the everyday activities of the classroom: science as a language for describing the natural world, science as a set of rhetorical values, science as an adult social community, and science as a place for mess and explosions. Among school-related values, participation, cooperation, and completing work were most important. Individual students leveraged different aspects of the local cultural model of scientific scholarship to construct themselves as competent participants in the science classroom. This study extends and complicates current analyses of classroom norms by showing that to understand identity construction, we must do more than identify a list of norms operating in a classroom---we must map the relationships between norms. This analysis demonstrates how broader discourses, in this case about schooling and science, infiltrated the classroom and influenced the meaning and operation of classroom norms and individual students' efforts to position themselves in relation to the classroom model of a good student. Finally, these findings show the value in examining recognition from three interrelated lenses: self-narratives, other-narratives, and observational accounts of positioning.

Does a Teacher's Classroom Observation Rating Vary across Multiple Classrooms?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lei, Xiaoxuan; Li, Hongli; Leroux, Audrey J.

2018-01-01

Classroom observations have been increasingly used for teacher evaluations, and it is important to examine the measurement quality and the use of observation ratings. When a teacher is observed in multiple classrooms, his or her observation ratings may vary across classrooms. In that case, using ratings from one classroom per teacher may not be…

Argumentation in Science Class: Its Planning, Practice, and Effect on Student Motivation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Taneja, Anju

Studies have shown an association between argumentative discourse in science class, better understanding of science concepts, and improved academic performance. However, there is lack of research on how argumentation can increase student motivation. This mixed methods concurrent nested study uses Bandura's construct of motivation and concepts of argumentation and formative feedback to understand how teachers orchestrate argumentation in science class and how it affects motivation. Qualitative data was collected through interviews of 4 grade-9 science teachers and through observing teacher-directed classroom discourse. Classroom observations allowed the researcher to record the rhythm of discourse by characterizing teacher and student speech as teacher presentation (TP), teacher guided authoritative discussion (AD), teacher guided dialogic discussion (DD), and student initiation (SI). The Student Motivation Towards Science Learning survey was administered to 67 students before and after a class in which argumentation was used. Analysis of interviews showed teachers collaborated to plan argumentation. Analysis of discourse identified the characteristics of argumentation and provided evidence of students' engagement in argumentation in a range of contexts. Student motivation scores were tested using Wilcoxon signed rank tests and Mann-Whitney U-tests, which showed no significant change. However, one construct of motivation---active learning strategy---significantly increased. Quantitative findings also indicate that teachers' use of multiple methods in teaching science can affect various constructs of students' motivation. This study promotes social change by providing teachers with insight about how to engage all students in argumentation.